The Purpose
by animeKS
Summary: Cancer. An incurable disease. It kills people, but it also wounds the hearts of those around. When cancers strikes close to the heart, can Kenshin and Kaoru find their way out of the darkness that has set? Rated M: Language and maybe situations
1. The Awful News

**Wel****come**_** back my lovelies! I'm going to go ahead and say this. I have no idea where I'm going with this story. Though, by the time you read this I probably will. I'd like you to get the behind-the-scenes, in my head and all that whatnot. It's midnight and I'm starting a new story. We'll see where this takes us. This is my second Rurouni Kenshin fanfiction... I still don't own Rurouni Kenshin... damnit. So for everyone who read my other fanfictions, you're all dolls and I love you. I would like to take a moment to say thank you to Kokoronagomu for her wonderful and inspiring review. I don't know what she said that made me start writing this fanfiction, but he's part of the reason. Anyway, welcome to my fourth and hopefully just as amazing story. Enjoy the ride. **_

* * *

_I need to see you. Please come over._

This was not the message that Kaoru expected to get from one of her best friends at five in the morning.

_Wrong person, Tomoe. _She sent the message and tried to fall back asleep, only to have have the device vibrate next to her head. Sighing, she opened one eye to read the words.

_Kaoru. Please... I need you to come over. I don't know what to do._

This definitely wasn't what she was expecting. Had she broken up with her boyfriend? Was she pregnant? All these ridiculous ideas popped into her head at one time. Sighing, she replied: _I'm on my way. Give me a few minutes._

Quickly rolling out of bed, Kaoru made her way to her dresser, pulling out a set of underclothes and making her way to the closet; pulling out a pair of jeans and an indigo tank-top, she made her way to the bathroom. Ten minutes later, she was dressed, her make-up was on, her teeth brushed and her hair in a ponytail. She was ready to go. As quietly as she could, she made her way downstairs, only to run into her father.

"Where are you going?" He asked, blocking her path.

She sighed, wanting to push him out of her way. "Tomoe text me. She needs someone to talk to. I think she broke up with Kenshin or something." Surprisingly, that was enough for her father. He stepped out of her way, telling her to let him know how it went. She ran to her car and squealed out of the driveway, making her way to Tomoe's house.

Pulling up to her huge, brick house, she noticed that she was the only one home. Kaoru stepped out of her car and made her way to the house's front door, her keys dangling in her hand. They had been best friends since they were little kids, so it was only natural that they had a set of keys to each other's house. Stepping inside, she closed and locked the door behind her. "Tomoe!" She called out into the empty house.

"Upstairs." She answered as Kaoru followed her voice.

Stepping into the room, she froze. There was a small group here already. Where the hell were their cars? "What's going on?" She looked around and saw their little group, including Kenshin. _Well she didn't break up with her boyfriend. _

"Kaoru, I have some bad news." Tears fell down her best friend's face.

"What happened?" She asked, as she made her way to the crying girl. Kneeling beside her, she took her hand and gave a quick squeeze, letting Tomoe know that she was there for her.

"I had my doctor's appointment, remember?" She looked at Kaoru, but she was talking to everyone. Kaoru nodded. "I know what wrong with me. I have cancer." Her voice broke as the confession was voiced. She sobbed uncontrollably as she pulled Kaoru into a tight hug.

Kaoru wrapped her arms around the girl, her mind and heart numb. _Cancer?_ She wasn't sure how to react. What kind of sick joke was this?

Kenshin rubbed a small part of Tomoe's back. "They can't do anything for her anymore. It's spread too much." He paused and looked away, disgusted. "All they can do is make her comfortable."

Kaoru pulled back and looked at them. "I refuse to believe that." Tomoe only cried harder, this time leaning into her boyfriend's shoulder.

This was not how their lives were supposed to go. This was their senior year. They were so close to graduating. They were all supposed to graduate at the top of their class. Tomoe, validictorian, was supposed to give the speech of a lifetime, motivating others to be great; to live life to the fullest. They were supposed to go to college and grow old being the best of friends. Tomoe and Kenshin were supposed to get married and have lots of children... and lots of grandchildren. No, this was not how life was supposed to be.

"Kaoru." Megumi touched her shoulder and shook her head. "Not here."

Not here? If not here, then when? When were they supposed to talk about this? When were they supposed to complain that fate had been wrong in doing this to them? Her heart was breaking and she couldn't do anything about it. Tears threatened to fall but she had never shown such a weakness to anyone before. Pulling her shoulder out of Megumi's grasp she made her way to the door.

"Kaoru!" Tomoe cried her name. "Don't go."

"I'll come back." She said without looking back. She ran down the stairs of the house and out to her car. She touched the door handle, planning to open it, but quickly let go and slammed her foot into the door. Over and over again, hoping that any anger she felt would make this go away. Make it as though as it never happened. The tears that fell down her face were soul shattering. She gripped the door as she fell to her knees; she cried out in pain.

In the back of her mind, she knew that her friends could potentially see here, as Tomoe's window faced where her car was parked. Knowing that they were too busy worrying of Tomoe, she let herself stay there. The tears couldn't stop pouring down her face and finally someone came up from behind her and pulled her into an embrace. Not caring who it was anymore, she turned in their arms and weeped against their shoulder. "It's not fair!" Her scream was muffled by the fabric of their shirt.

Her tears finally dried up some time later and she pulled back from the person who had come to console her. _Kenshin._

"Tomoe wanted to know that you're okay."

She gave a disgusted noise at the back of her throat. "I'm crying and she has cancer. Sorry, but I don't think that it matters if I'm okay or not."

Kenshin sighed as he stood up and held his hand out for her. "You're one of the most important people in Tomoe's life. What you feel and how you are matters to her. There's nothing we can do but make her comfortable. So how about we try not hurting her feelings."

She took his hand and hoisted herself; letting go immediately after she had her feet. "I would never hurt her feelings."

"You did when you walked out." He replied, sounding a little angered. Kenshin had always been protective of her. Anyone who made his girlfriend cry would wish they never saw the light of day again.

She leaned against her car and rested the base of her skull against the hood. "I'm not strong enough for this..."

"What, you think she is? She's dying. One day she won't wake up." He gave her a repugnant glare. "From where I'm standing, and obviously from where she's standing, you've got it pretty fucking good. So don't give me that shit about not being strong enough."

"Fuck you." She sighed, not looking at him. She was too emotionally drained, too early in the morning to even try to fight him on this. Her phone rang before he could reply. She answered and placed it to her ear. "Hello?"

_"Kaoru, are you still here?"_

"Yeah, I am. I'm talking to Prince Charming right now." Sarcasm drenched her last sentence.

_"I understand what you're feeling. Go ahead and go do what you need to before school. I'll see you there." _

"No, I'm not leaving. That would be so wrong of me, on so many levels." She just needed a few minutes to herself.

_"It's fine. Everyone is leaving anyway. I need to have a little alone time with Kenshin."_

"Then I'll send him up for you."

_"Thank you. I love you."_

"You're welcome. Love you, too. I'll see you guys at school." She hung up her phone and looked at Tomoe's Mr. Perfect. "Tomoe is calling you. She wants to have a little alone time before school starts... and I'm sure before all of this gets complicated."

He sighed. "It's already complicated."

"You know what I mean."

He nodded and turned to go inside to Tomoe. "See you at school." He told her and kept walking.

"Yeah..."

* * *

Kenshin entered Tomoe's room as everyone was leaving. He said his good-byes and told them all that he'd see them in a few hours. Tomoe really was perfect. Even as her world crumbled around her, she was not going to give up on her life. "Are you sure you're up to going to class today?" He asked, leaning over to press his forehead to hers.

"Yes." She smiled sadly. Her features had always been pale, but somehow, with this news out in the open, it just made her look even more pale. Incredibly sick. Her black hair framed her lovely features, almost hiding the truth that they all knew.

He shook his head; his red mane slightly flowing over his shoulders. "I can't believe Kaoru walked out like that." He changed the subject, not so subtly.

"Don't judge her too harshly." Tomoe leaned in against him.

Wrapping his arm around her, he asked her how she could say that? "She left you in here so she could grieve. Somehow she made this twisted thing about her and how it makes her feel."

"Yet you went down there to comfort her." She smiled faintly.

"Had you not asked me to, I wouldn't have." He assured her. He only tolerated Kaoru for Tomoe's sake. In all honesty, he couldn't stand her. She was too outspoken for his taste, and she was definitely the trouble maker of the group. He was the heir to a major corporation; as was Aoshi. Megumi was by nature very mature, while Misao and Tomoe had adapted to the lives of their boyfriends. Sanosuke was kept in line by Megumi. Kaoru was the only one who ran free and wild.

"This isn't her first time dealing with this... I doubt it gets easier, no matter how many times you're faced with such difficult news." She muttered.

Pulling back to look at her face, he frowned. "What are you talking about?"

Tomoe looked into his eyes. "I thought you knew about this." He shook his head. "Kaoru's mother died from cancer... five years ago." She shook her head. "It was a very slow and painful thing to watch. They had plenty of treatments, and I think that's what killed Kaoru. She couldn't deal with the fact that she still lost someone."

"You having cancer isn't about her." Kenshin stated.

"It's not, but I understand the selfish things that she's doing to hide how much she hurts."

Kenshin couldn't comment and Tomoe refused to push. They stayed there in silence; basking in each other's company.

He was going to miss this. Honestly, he didn't know how he would go on without her.

"You can do it." He could tell that she was smiling.

"What do you mean?"

"You'll make it without me." She turned and kissed his cheek before getting up. They had to start getting ready for school, she informed him as she walked out of the room.

"No, I won't." He whispered to himself.

* * *

Kaoru wiped away the tears that had somehow managed to form and fall. She had made her way back to her house, though she wasn't sure how.

Walking in, she saw her father at the kitchen table with his girlfriend, Tae.

That was a sharp reminder of what was happening. His girlfriend was nice and Kaoru liked her, but today... today she brought up painful memories.

She walked towards them as her father looked up and smiled. "What'd she have to say?"

Again, tears began to fall. How was she ever going to get through this?

"Kaoru?" Her father was on his feet in an instant and had his arms around her. "What is it?"

She wrapped her arms around her father's waist. "She's dying, dad." She cried out in pain. "Just like mom."

Unexpectedly, she felt another pair of arms encircling her. Looking up, she saw that Tae was there, holding her. Just like a mother would. She wanted to push her away, but she couldn't. Taking one arm from around her father, she wrapped it around Tae, pulling her close. They both stood there, holding her as she let out all the pain that she could.

She finally pulled back. "How do you get over this?" She asked them as they all sat down again.

"You don't, sweetie." Tae reached out and touched her hand. "It gets easier as time goes on, but you never get over it."

"We've come so far in world. Why the hell can't we figure out how to cure cancer?" She wanted to slam her fist down on the table, as though demanding justice.

Her father and Tae looked at each other, worried. "Maybe we should all stay home today." He suggested.

"No." Kaoru looked up. "If Tomoe can go to school through all this, I would be a horrible person to not attempt to." She stood up and looked at the clock. She knew she was going to be late. She said she'd go, not that she'd be on time.

Grabbing her things, she kissed her father's cheek and hugged Tae. "Thanks, you guys." Walking out the door, she made her way to school. Pulling in, she noticed her friends were sitting outside, even after the bell had rang. Stepping out and walking over to them, she was greeted with glares from the men of the group.

"Tomoe's upset that you didn't weren't here." Sano commented.

"Well I'm here now, aren't I?"

"You're late."

"Where is she?" Kaoru asked, brushing off his comment. She got here, hadn't she? They needed to get off her back.

"Inside. She's waiting for you." Kenshin replied, opening the door for her.

"Don't make her cry." Megumi scowled at her.

Without turning around, Kaoru gave them the finger. She walked in and immediately saw Tomoe. "Hey."

"I was afraid that you weren't going to show up." She smiled.

"I was trying to figure out how to make it through the day without crying and hugging you everytime I saw you." She lightly joked and they both smiled. Kaoru never cried in front of anyone if she could help it.

"I'll gladly take the hug, but I don't need you to cry. I would end up crying too." They embraced. "I'm scared, Kaoru."

"I know..."

"I'm not going to live... how do I cope with that? How do I make the best of all of this?"

"By being with the people you love..."

* * *

_**End chapter one. This is depressing, yes? I think so. Luckily, I don't know the first hand of experience of what cancer patients go through as they die, but my heart goes out to the people who do. **_

_**My heart also goes out to the people who do have family who are or who have died of cancer. That I know well. My grandmother died of cancer when I was very little, and my aunt passed earlier this year. I think, in a way, she also inspired this story. She was so strong, until the very end. **_

_**Anyway, onto the actual story: I'm not sure how I feel about Kaoru yet. She is kind of making this about her, but it's bringing up painful windows. Tomoe isn't an ice cold bitch, which I like... not that i like her dying of cancer or anything, but it suits the purpose of my story. Kenshin's a dick (yeah, I said that) and their posse has a lot in store (in my mind anyway). I hope you enjoyed chapter one.**_

_**Reviews please. I really want to know what you thought.**_

_**-K**_


	2. Tomoe

**_I'm back. Quite quickly, might I add. Chapter one was very emotional and I felt great with how it turned out; I just hope that this chapter can compare to it. I still don't own Rurouni Kenshin (which is a good thing, because it never would have been as good). _**

**_I'm sorry, I can't go on without saying this. I have to have my rant. Rurouni Kenshin, the manga was so much better  than the anime... in my opinion. Obviously to each their own. But that doesn't matter. On with The Purpose._**

* * *

Days and weeks went by, and Tomoe's spirits fell. She was quickly fading, but she had Kaoru and Kenshin at her side, almost constantly. They didn't want her to be alone, and she welcomed the support they were giving her. "I love you both", she had told them one night as they sat around in her livingroom. The girls were already dressed for bed, but they were staying up talking.

Kenshin and Tomoe were sitting on the sofa. Tomoe wore a loose nightgown that covered her legs as they rested upon Kenshin's lap; he soothingly ran his hands over them. Kaoru sat in front of them, in a single chair, in a pair of pajama bottoms and a tank top, her legs pulled up to her chest. This had become the norm for them.

"I love you, too." Kaoru and Kenshin had replied to her. Kaoru had agreed that tonight had been her night to stay with Tomoe, but Kenshin had said that he wanted to come over and spend time with his girlfriend.

Tomoe opened her mouth to say something, but unexpectedly gave a harsh cough.

"Are you okay?" Kaoru started to stand up, but Tomoe held up the hand that she wasn't coughing in to.

"I'm fine." She wheezed out. She cleared her throat and then looked at them. "We've danced around this long enough." She took a deep breath. "We all know I'm not going to make it much longer. I want us to talk about it." It was true. She'd been sick for months now. Her family had known, but they didn't change their schedules to be with her in what could possibly be her last moments.

"Tomoe..." Kenshin started.

"Kenshin, if we don't talk about this now, when will we?" Her eyes sad, she faced Kaoru.

"Don't upset her." Kaoru threw at him. He had said that to her so many times and now he turned around and did it because what? He didn't want to acknowledge the fact that no matter what they did, he couldn't change it.

He glared at her before sighing. "Fine."

"I want you guys to be there for each other. I want you two to be friends for as long as you both continue to live." They both gave her a startling look, and she laughed. "I'm serious. I know you two don't think that you have much in common, but I see a lot of the same thing in the two of you. I know that there's much to be desired in your friendship, but it would mean the world to me if you would just stick with each other, even after I'm gone."

"Tomoe, we're friends because of you."

Kenshin snorted. Apparently friends was pushing it too far. "We tolerate each other because of you. We have absolutely nothing in common."

"You have me." She touched his arm.

"And you'll be gone." Kaoru flinched at his words. It was cruel thing to say, but true.

"The memory you hold of me won't be." She looked at Kaoru.

"I'll try, but only because you asked."

They both looked at Kenshin. He grabbed her hand and gave a light squeeze. "If it makes you happy."

Tomoe smiled. "Thank you. Now, I'm going to bed, because I'm tired. Kenshin, you're going to stay and talk to Kaoru. If you don't, I'll be mad at you."

He sighed, again. "You're not letting me get out of this, are you?"

She laughed. "Not a chance." She sat up and they kissed before she walked over to Kaoru and hugged her.

"Do you need help with anything?" She asked.

"No. I'm fine, thank you." She waved at them as she walked upstairs to go to bed.

She looked at Kenshin and sat in the awkward silence. "I'm not really sure what to say to you." She admitted.

"I feel the same way." He stated. "I..." He paused. "I heard what happened to your mom."

"Tomoe told you." Kaoru stated and he nodded. Of course she had. "It was something I was always okay with. I was young and I'd never been around it before. She'd been diagnosed years before, but she never got worse. One year, ssomething happened, something changed to make everything I had come to know go bad. I'd never seen her so sick. We did everything we could, but she was in agonizing pain. The cancer, the chemo, everything just seemed to be tearing my mother away from me. She died four months later." She took a deep breath, keeping the tears from forming as she looked in him the eyes. "I thought I could save her... and I couldn't." She angrily wiped the tears away before turning her head to look up the stairs. "I'm living this nightmare all over again."

He sighed and patted the seat next to him. She gave him a strange look. "Well, come here." He rolled his amethyst eyes. She got up and cautiously made her way towards him. "Tomoe was there for everything?"

She nodded. "I don't know how I would have gotten through that without her. She was there to wipe away all of my tears; she'd tell me everything would be okay, even after mom died. She's the reason I'm me today." Pulling her knees back up to her chest, she began to mess with the bottoms of her pajama pants. "How are we supposed to do this?"

"I don't know." He whispered. In a moment of weakness, for both of them, he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her into a hug. She opened her mouth to say something, but he beat her to it. "Just... sit here. Let me do this." It was a comfort, they both knew how the other felt. He looked away. Obviously, holding anyone other than Tomoe was beyond slightly uncomfortable. They didn't talk after that. They just sat there in the silence and eventually they both fell asleep.

* * *

The morning after, Kaoru was the first to wake up. Something was tickling her nose; constantly trying to swat it away, she finally opened her eyes only to see a red flaming hair in front of her eyes. She had slept next to Kenshin all night? She shifted a little bit and noticed that his arm wasn't around her anymore. _Thank you._ She thought to herself.

She quickly stood up and looked back to make sure she hadn't woken him up. Seeing that he was still sleeping, she went upstairs to wake up Tomoe. She walked to Tomoe's side and touched her shoulder, but quickly pulled her hand back at the unexpected temperature of her body. Touching her face, Kaoru choked on her sob. Tomoe's body was cold. She shook her shoulder a bit. "Tomoe?" She whispered, but the girl didn't react. "Tomoe?" She said a little louder, continuously shaking her shoulder. "Please... please, don't do this." She shook her a little harder. "Please, wake up!"

But she didn't, and she never would again. Looking at her face, Kaoru noticed how peaceful she looked. She wasn't hurting anymore, but with that, Kaoru's heart ached much harder than she ever thought possible. She didn't know what to do. She knew it wouldn't make a difference, but she tried to wake her up again, anyway. Pushing herself away from her best friend, she ran down the stairs to where Kenshin was. He was just getting up when he saw her.

"What is it?" He asked.

She didn't know what possessed her to do what she did. It defied everything that they said they felt for each other, but as tears streamed down her face, she walked up to Kenshin and wrapped her arms around his waist, crying into his shoulder. "She gone." She cried out. She expected him to push her away, to shove her aside and run to Tomoe, begging her to wake up, for him, for their love. For anything that could possibly be.

But he didn't. He stayed silent as he wrapped his arms around her shoulders and held her close. This... this was their bond. He pulled her back after a few minutes, grabbed her hand and walked up the stairs with her. Just walking into the room, he knew Kaoru told the truth. His hand tightened around hers. "Stay with her. I'll go make the calls." He said, but didn't move.

"Kenshin." She slid her hand out of his. "I'll do it. You stay here." She walked away when he didn't answer.

She called everyone she could think of, but the appropriate authorities were the first to arrive. "What's your relationship with the deceased?" The man who arrived asked unsympathetically.

"Her name is Tomoe." Kaoru replied, defensively.

"Kaoru." They looked back to see Kenshin there. "He's just doing his job." He looked at the man. "They're best friends." When asked what his relationship was, he answered.

"Does she have any family?"

"I've called them already."

"You've done a lot for her just being dead." He sounded suspicious.

Kenshin stepped up for her. "She doesn't need all that time on her hands. Her best friend died of cancer. If you were her, would you just sit around?"

"Kamura!" They all jumped as a man strode towards them. "Forgive him, he doesn't mean to sound accusing. He's new the job." He gave the young man a glare because the two excused themselves.

"Kenshin, there's someone I haven't contacted." She admitted, causing him to look at her.

"Who?"

"Enishi." She looked away as Kenshin cursed. Enishi was Tomoe's younger brother and hated Kenshin with a burning passion. He would do anything to get Kenshin out of his sister's life. More times than not, he'd started a fight. Tomoe, of course, always thought he was in the wrong, which made him more determined to get her away from Kenshin. "I'll... I'll get around to it, I promise."

"No, I'll do it. He already hates me, so I might as well." He sighed.

"You shouldn't have to; I'll do it." She wasn't going to put him in that situation.

Kenshin's eyes were tired and hurt. "Do you know what he'll do to you?"

She tilted her head to the side as she looked at him. "I'm very aware of what Enishi is able to do. That doesn't mean I should back out." Enishi would kill her. He loved his sister, so much so that he seemed obsessed. "I'll tell him, so don't worry about it."

"Tell who, what?" They both turned to see Enishi standing there. "Where's Tomoe and why are all these people at my house?" He took a step forward. He'd grown up since they had last seen him. He was well built, and his white hair was chopped short, in spikes. He was the exact opposite of his sister.

Kaoru took a step forward to meet him. "Enishi, I'm so sorry." Had he been anyone else, she would have reached out to touch their arm in a soothing manner, but she was scared of him, though she'd never admit it out loud.

"What. Happened?" His eyes turned dark, his body tensed like an animal trapped in a cage, ready to strike out to hurt.

"Tomoe... she-she died." Her heart would never accept those words, no matter how true they were.

"What?" His eyes widened.

She knew it was rhetorical, so she went on. "I am so, so sorry."

Enishi's eyes continued behind her, his face hardening. "You did this!" He yelled at Kenshin.

"Enishi, stop. Tomoe died of cancer. Kenshin couldn't do anything about that." Kaoru stepped in front of him as he went for Kenshin. "Enishi." She said, but he tried to push passed her. Taking the opportunity, she placed her palms on his chest and shoved him back. "Please, stop. Your sister would be disappointed to see you acting like this."

He looked down at her and struck her in the face. Her head whipped to the side, but she didn't stumble. "Hit me all you want to, but it's not going to change anything." She could taste the blood in her mouth. "Instead of blaming him, you should be thanking him. Without him, your sister would have been alone. If anything, he helped her hold on longer than she would have without him. You sure as hell weren't here to help you through this." She shouldn't have taken such a low blow, but it was true. Kenshin had done more for her than Enishi had or ever could in a lifetime.

He moved to strike her again; taking his anger out on her again, but Kenshin stepped in front of her as someone else from behind grabbed him. It was Aoshi, Kaoru noticed as she stepped out from behind him.

"Let's take a walk." He said to Enishi.

"Like hell-" he started, but was cut off.

"I wasn't suggesting it, I was telling you. You need to cool off before you take any more part in this." He pulled Enishi outside and Kenshin turned back to Kaoru.

"Why did you let him strike you?" He asked.

"I wasn't really expecting it, though I guess it's not surprising." She looked at him, as she felt her lip, trying to see what damage was visible. "I would let him hit me a thousand times if it would bring her back." She sighed.

He reached forward and wiped the blood off her lip. "I misjudged you." He commented.

She gave him a sad smile. "Not many people know the real me. Tomoe was the only one that really, truly knew me." She tried to hide the pain she was feeling by giving him a brighter smile, but it didn't quite reach her eyes.

They were silent as the coroner's brought her body down. Kaoru made a noise, trying to hold down a sob and Kenshin pulled her face to his chest, hiding her from the sight. She definitely wasn't at all what he thought she was.

Things began to settle down afterwards, but only slightly. Still separated from their friends, Kenshin brought up an idea. "I think we should do what Tomoe said."

She looked at him, his eyes wide. "What?"

"I think we should be there for each other... even after all of this is over." She could only nod; it was what Tomoe wanted. She couldn't say anything as they stayed in silence. "Kaoru." He called her name, wanting her attention. "Let's... let's go on and where you and Tomoe left off."

She looked at him, her eyes wide. "What?"

He couldn't look her in the eye, so he kept his gaze forward. "It won't be the same, since I'm not her, but I think it will keep her alive, for the both of us."

"Are you okay with that?"

He nodded and looked at her. "Are you?"

It was her turn to look forward. Was she? Would would she gain if she had Kenshin in her life- in Tomoe's place. She would forever have Tomoe since this is what she wanted from them and more. What would she lose? Her loneliness. The emptiness in her heart would be a little more bearable. "Yeah, I am."

* * *

**_There's chapter two! I hope you all enjoyed it... in the sense that it was good writing, not that someone died. I'm sure you all knew that though. _**

**_I'm not sure how it compared to chapter one, and I feel sort of bad that I killed Tomoe off so early, but it was necessary. Geez, I sound like a horrible person. Anyhoo, comments, questions, concerns?_**

**_Reviews? :P_**

**_-K_**


	3. Funeral

_**Here we go: Chapter three. Hopefully, so far you all like how this is going. I'm still not sure where I'm taking this- so it's an adventure to all of us. Anyway, yes, Tomoe is dead. I still feel bad about killing her off, but I needed her to out of the picture of some Kenshin and Kaoru time. Bad, bad person. Sigh. Ah, well.**_

_**I apologize for taking so long with chapter three. I've been having a really great life right now, so it's a little hard to channel my inner sadness... something like that. :P ... and school started.**_

_**I'm really trying here though.**_

_**I still don't own Rurouni Kenshin. Poo. Here's chapter three, enjoy.**_

* * *

Tomoe was gone. No matter how many times Kaoru told herself that, her heart and mind wanted to reject the thought. It was the day of her funeral and Kaoru honestly wanted nothing more than to skip it. For the last few days, Kenshin had made her that she was always busy, as to keep her mind off of it- not that it helped.

She pulled out the black dress in her closet, and carelessly flung it on her bed. All Kaoru wanted to do was crawl back under the covers and go to sleep. She wanted to wake up and find that this had all been some terrible nightmare. Going to Tomoe's funeral was the final goodbye, and she didn't want to be the one to say it.

Walking back over to her bed, she fell back on it, her head slamming against the feathery mattress. She closed her eyes and tried to forget about the world. She didn't get much time to herself before her phone rang. Kaoru sighed as she placed the phone against her ear.

"Yeah?"

_"Hey, are you ready?"_ She heard Misao ask on the other end.

"Almost... why?"

_"I'll be there in five minutes. I'm taking you to the funeral."_

Kaoru's eyes shot open. Kenshin promised that he would go with her. Tomoe would never intentionally break a promise like that. After the thought, she cringed. It wasn't fair to either of them to be compared like that. "Where's Kenshin?"

Misao sighed. _"He's having a hard time this morning. He'll meet us there. Aoshi is bringing him."_

"I understand." Kaoru sighed to herself. "I'll be ready." She didn't wait for a reply as she hung up. Sitting up, she pulled up Kenshin's number in her phone and began to type a message to him.

_Misao told me you were having a hard time this morning... I know this is hard, for the both of us. I'm here for you, just like I know you are for me. I'll see you there. _

She stared at the message for a moment before sending it. She didn't know that he would show such a weakened side of himself. She quickly dropped the phone into the purse by her bed, and picked up the dress. She had showered earlier that day, so there wasn't much left she had to do. She quickly pulled the dress over her head, and went to put some make-up on.

In no time she was ready and moments later, Misao was at her door. "You ready to go?"

Kaoru breathed deeply, trying to keep her emotions in check. "No, but I have to do this. It would be an insult to her if I didn't."

Misao patted her back a little before they walked to the car. The ride was quick but silent. Misao didn't know what to say, and Kaoru was fine with that. She didn't want to talk. As soon as they pulled up, Megumi made her way towards them; Sano stayed by Aoshi and Kenshin.

Megumi pulled Kaoru into a slight hug. "How are you?"

"Fine." She lied. How was she supposed to be feeling? She felt numb, cold and empty. Her false answer receive a stern look from the older woman. She couldn't lie to her. Kaoru leaned her head against Megumi's shoulder. "I'm miserable and tired."

She felt Megumi stroke her hair. "I know, sweetie. This is going to be hard for all of us." They all knew that it would be the hardest for Kaoru and Kenshin. Both of their lives practically revolved around Tomoe. After standing there for a few minutes, Megumi led the two girls to where the others were.

Kaoru could feel her eyes tearing up. She took short, unsteady breaths as she tried to hold everything in. She stopped in the middle of the parking lot, not able to move any closer. "I can't." She cried out. Kaoru brought her hands to her face, covering her eyes as tears flowed down her face.

"Kaoru." Misao sighed sympathetically, bringing her hand up to soothingly rub her back.

Kaoru tried to shake off her touch.

"Kaoru." She heard Kenshin's voice. Looking up, he was in front of her. He pulled her against him and wrapped his arms around her shoulders; her arms automatically wrapping around his waist. "It's okay." His hand began to stroke her hair. "It's going to be okay."

"She's gone." She cried into his shoulder.

"She's not." He answered. "She's here because you're here; because I'm here. She's here with all of us. She lives on because of the memories we have of her."

She pulled back and looked into his soft, amethyst eyes. "Thank you." She breathed.

He whispered in her ear. "I'm sorry I didn't come get you."

Kaoru shook her head. "Don't apologize." She gave a smiled sadly.

"Let me." He said. "I told you that I would be there and I wasn't."

"You had your reasons." She replied, backing out of his arms.

He took her hand and began to lead her to the doors; Misao and Megumi following them. "Are you ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be." She replied.

"Kaoru?" Looking back, she saw Tomoe's mother.

"Mrs. Yukishiro." Kaoru answered, gently sliding her hand out of Kenshin's to approach the older woman.

Tomoe's mother pulled Kaoru into her arms and began to cry on her shoulder. "I'm so sorry you had to be the one to find her." She wailed a bit. "I should have been there. I shouldn't have gone on those business trips. I'm so, so sorry."

Kaoru wrapped her arms around the woman. "Please don't say that. I'm sorry she didn't have any more time. I only regret that she didn't get to see you before she passed. I'm so sorry." Her eyes began to tear up again. Would she soon run out of tears?

She pulled back and looked at Kenshin as she stuck her hand out.

Kenshin approached her and took her hand.

Tomoe's mother squeezed his hand, and Kaoru's. "Thank you... the both of you. I know she was in good hands with the two of you constantly by her side."

"It was an honor to be by her side until the end." Kenshin said.

"Funny, I thought you were by Kaoru's side when Tomoe passed."

They all turned to see Enishi. He was so bitter about the passing of his sister. He wanted to blame everything except the cancer. He couldn't face the truth.

"Enishi, what are you talking about?" His mother asked him as she released the others' hands.

He scowled at Kenshin. "Heroic Himura was sleeping next to Kaoru downstairs while Tomoe died in her bed."

Kaoru stepped up, defending Kenshin. "We were downstairs talking about Tomoe." She turned to the mother. "Tomoe was tired and excused herself to go sleep. She told us to stay downstairs to talk. We did. I fell asleep on accident. When I woke up the next morning, she was gone. I'm so sorry."

Tomoe's mother sighed before looking at Enishi. "Neither Kaoru nor Kenshin would ever hurt Tomoe in the way you're implying, Enishi. You should be ashamed of yourself." She turned around, patted Kenshin's cheek and kiss Kaoru's. She threw a look at Enishi before she walked into the funeral home.

Enishi didn't stay any longer. He shoved through the group and followed his mother.

The service was beautiful, but extremely emotional. Tomoe's friends were permitted to sit with the family. Kaoru sat in between Misao and Kenshin. She held her emotions in check through the first part, but as Tomoe's life was being laid about before her eyes, she placed her hand over her mouth, as if to silence whatever was trying to escape.

Without looking away from her mother, who was currently talking about her daughter, he grabbed Kaoru's hand and laced his fingers with her. It was meant to comfort her and it did.

"Tomoe was so full of life, even in her last months. Every time she was around her friends, or even talked about them, I could see how happy she was. They were her world, and I don't know where she would have been without them." Her mother blotted her eyes. "Kenshin, Kaoru, all of you... she wouldn't have made it as long as she did without you. Thank you."

She blotted her eyes a little more as she took a seat by her son and husband. The service went on and finally finished. Everyone was escorted out of the parlor, except for the family. They said their last goodbyes before going to join the others. Kaoru was the last; she'd asked to be.

She looked down at Tomoe's beautiful face. "I miss you." She lightly brushed Tomoe's hair back before she leaned down and kissed her forehead. "I hope that you're happy and not in pain anymore."

"She'd be more happy if you would smile."

Kaoru turned at the voice. "Who are you?"

He walked up to her side and looked at Tomoe's lifeless corpse. "Akira Kiyosato." He looked at her. "And you are?"

She gave him a strange look. "Kaoru Kamiya."

"I've heard a lot about you." He looked back into the casket; a small, sad smile caressing his lips. "Tomoe loved you."

Kaoru followed his gaze. "How did you know Tomoe?"

He looked at her from the corner of his eye. "It's not time for you to know that, yet."

"But-" She started.

"Patience." He touched her hand. "Everything Tomoe couldn't say will be shown to you when the time is right."

She opened her mouth, but a voice interrupted her. "Kaoru."

They both looked back as Kenshin came towards them; he was glaring.

Kaoru looked down and the man was still holding her hand. She gently slipped hers out of his before taking a step away from him. She made her way to his side before linking her arm with his. "Kenshin, this is-"

Akira stepped up, reaching out his hand. "Akira Kiyosato."

Kenshin stared at his hand for a moment and Kaoru half expected him to refuse it, but he didn't. "Kenshin Himura."

"It's a pleasure to meet you." They shook and released hands. "I was telling Ms. Kamiya that I've heard a lot about the both of you."

"How did you know her?"

He smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "I trust she will fill you in on that answer." He glanced down at Tomoe. "Goodbye." He whispered before walking away.

* * *

_**Oh my gosh! I'm so, so, so, so, so, so, so sorry it took so long to release Funeral. Really. Everything has been so hectic and for the most part, pretty good, so it was hard to trigger my inner sadness, but I pushed my way through it. Not sure how, but I did. **_

_**School has started, so I won't be able to update as much as I like (which would be a lot, since I now know where I'm going with this). **_

_**Hopefully I'll be able to do it once or twice every week. Depending on how much work I get done. College is a killer. No lie.**_

_**Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this and I will be updating as soon as I can. :)**_

_**(Note: I'm going to an AnimeFest this next weekend, so I'm hoping that I'll be able to grab some more inspiration there. I'll definitely be looking for it. :) )**_

_**-K**_


	4. Coping

_**While inspiration is hitting me, I'm going to be writing. Hopefully it sticks with me. I'm going to draw this out as much as I can. If anything, this is inspiration for my other writings. Thanks for sticking with me. :)**_

* * *

Days passed since Tomoe was buried and things weren't getting any easier for Kaoru. She still had a hard time sleeping and she didn't feel as open with her friends and they felt with her. She was constantly reminded of Tomoe. The things someone said, something someone wore... her friends. They were all constant reminders. No one seemed to notice her pain, though. She was okay with that. She was tired of them eyeing her like a hawk. It was time for her to suffer in silence.

It was after school, and all they were doing was loitering; wasting time for no apparent reason. No one wanted to go home... except for Kaoru. She just wanted to go sit in the silence.

"Kaoru." She looked up from where she was. Her friends were far ahead of. Misao gave her a strange look as she made her way back to her. "Are you okay?" Kaoru nodded and Misao scowled. "Don't think you can lie to me."

Kaoru couldn't help but let out a little laugh. Misao tried to take Megumi's place at times, but it never really worked.. "I'm okay, I promise." She wanted to be anyway. She was tired of feeling so drained.

Misao linked arms with her and pulled her towards the group. "Are you okay?" Megumi asked her as she, too, approached the group.

"I'm okay, really." She gave her best smile.

Kenshin gave her a strange look, but didn't say anything as he went back to talking to Aoshi and Sano.

Kaoru sighed and looked back down at her feet as they walked down the hallways of the school.

"So what do you think? Should we do that?" Kaoru's head lifted as she tried to pay attention to their conversation.

"Yeah, I think Tomoe would have liked that." He smiled, as if picturing how she would have responded to the topic, whatever it was.

Kaoru wanted to ask what they were talking about, but her phone rang. "Hello?" She answered. She didn't recognize the number.

_"This is Tomoe's mother. Is this Kaoru Kamiya?" _

Kaoru breath caught. "Yes, yes it. How can I help you?"

_"I found some things in Tomoe's room that I thought you might want to look at. Would you mind coming and helping me look through these things...?"_ She sounded awkward, almost like she didn't like asking for such a request.

"Of course. When would you like me?"

_"Are you free right now?" _

"Yes ma'am. I'll be right over."

_"Thank you very much." _

"You're more than welcome. Thank you for calling me. I'm headed there right now."

_"Just let yourself in."_ She hung up.

She returned the phone to her pocket and looked at her friends, who in turn were staring at her. "I've got to go, sorry." She didn't wait for a reply as she turned on her heel and took off down the hall, heading toward her car.

She jumped in and started it, peeling out of the parking lot and past her friends who were making their way out of the school. Driving through the town, as quickly as possible, she made her way to Tomoe's house.

She pulled up and frantically made her way into the house, running up the stairs and coming in on her mother crying over her things. "Mrs. Yukishiro..." She whispered.

Tomoe's mother looked up at her, startled. "Oh, Kaoru." She sniffled and wiped her tears. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to be a wreck." She patted to the spot beside her. "Please, come join me."

Kaoru placed herself by Tomoe's mother.

"Look at these." Her mother placed picture books in front of her. They were of Tomoe and Kaoru; almost all of them.

Kaoru's eyes began to water as she remembered the memories. She ran her hands over the pictures. "I remember these." She touched one where Tomoe was drenched and her face held a look of disgust. Kaoru laughed. "We were at the lake here." She ran her finger over the picture; remembering the day clearly. "We were in a boat. I told her not to move to much, but she didn't listen. I was so scared as I held on to the sides. She ended up standing up, and she fell off, face first into the water." She laughed again. "She swam to shallow waters and yelled at me for not warning her."

Tomoe's mother looked at the pictures with her. "Here: You two were going out for Halloween." She laughed. "I remember you two met Misao that year. A docile flower, a swords-woman and a ninja. You three were quite a pair. I remember you came back with Misao in tow. You begged for her to spend the night. We spent the next two hours tracking down her family." They laughed together.

"Tomoe was always fair. In everything. Her looks, her personality... her spirit. You helped her in more ways than you know."

Strangely, this was making Kaoru feel better. She smiled and cleared her throat. "I can't believe she kept all of these."

Tomoe's mother leaned forward and grabbed something. "This is for you." Kaoru gave her a confused look. "It's her diary. I want you to be open minded about it when you read it. It shares her deepest secrets. Things that she didn't think you would understand. I want you to read it."

"I don't understand."

"I know, but you will." She smiled lovingly.

Kaoru looked at it for a few minutes and then looked back at Tomoe's mother. "Why did you call me?" She paused. "I mean, why did you call me instead of Kenshin?"

"You've been with Tomoe far longer than Kenshin." She started. "You're also more likely to understand Tomoe's heart in this diary than what Kenshin is. I'm hoping that you're able to share these secrets with him." She admitted, finally.

Kaoru was quiet for a moment. "I see." She looked up into the woman's eyes. "I'll read it with an open heart and an open mind."

Her mother leaned forward and gently patted Kaoru's cheek. "Thank you." For the rest of the afternoon they went through Tomoe's things.

When she finally left the house, she looked at her phone, which she had left in the car.

**5 Missed Calls**

_Misao_

_Misao_

_Megumi_

_Sanosuke_

_Misao_

**5 New Text Messages**

Misao: _Are you okay? Where are you?_

Misao: _Kaoru! Where did you go?_

Megumi: _You need to call me when you get this._

Misao:_ Don't make me come hunt you down._

Kenshin:_ You need to call Misao. She's been nagging us all night._

She sighed as she text Kenshin back. _I'm sorry. I was preoccupied. I'll call her when I get home._ She sent it and left for home. She quickly sent a text to Misao telling her that she was fine, but she was going to bed and she'd talk to her tomorrow.

She quickly got ready for bed before she laid down on her bed and opened a random entry in Tomoe's diary.

_Dear Diary, _

_How can this be fair? Where to even begin? I have Kenshin. He's the love of my life. It feels like we've known each other forever and I'm on cloud nine every time I think of him, but my family has announced that I am to be given away in a political marriage. Damn my father for his government standing. How is this fair? Why can't he give away Enishi? Everyone knows that he'd love nothing better than to please father. _

_I wish I could tell Kaoru. Even though I know she would take my side, she could never really understand. Her family is so normal, and mine is... not. My parents say that I have to meet him next week, but I don't want to. I love Kenshin and I don't want to be apart from him. Knowing my luck, this man will be older than time. I would rather die. I cannot bear to put myself through this. _

_But for my family, I must try. What to do..._

Kaoru frowned. Why would Tomoe keep such a thing from her? They were best friends, and yes, Kaoru would definitely take Tomoe's side, but why would she think she wouldn't understand? Just because their lives weren't the same didn't mean she couldn't comprehend such a situation. She scrolled through the next few entries.

_Dear Diary, _

_I don't know what to do! I met the man my father wants me to marry. He is definitely NOT an old man. He's about eight years older than me, and is a very successful business man. My father dotes on him as if he were my father's own son. I can see why he would want to match me with him. Akira Kiyosato is his name. He's such a charming young man. _

_I find him to be as interesting as Kenshin, but I do not love him the same way. I don't love Akira at all, in fact, as I have just met him. I don't wish to have feeling for him though- ever. I love Kenshin, and I always want to love Kenshin. I want to be married to him, and I want to have a family with him. This is so frustrating. I wish I could confide in Kaoru, but I cannot. Maybe I should confide in Sayo? What to do..._

Kaoru had switched positions and now held the diary above her head as she lay on her back. "Why the hell didn't I know about any of this?" She sighed.

Her phone rang and she picked it up without looking at the ID. "Yes?"

_"Where are you?"_

"Kenshin?"

_"Where are you?"_

"My room."

_"Doing what?"_

"Reading something."

_"Why did you leave so fast?"_

Nosey? "Tomoe's mom called me. She asked for my help."

_"In doing what?"_

"Cleaning out her room."

_"And you just agreed."_

"Kenshin, what's your problem?" In the background she heard Misao yell for another round. "Are you guys drinking?"

_"Come join us, Kaoru!"_ She pulled the phone away from her ear as Misao yelled at her.

She sighed. "Where are you guys?" He informed her that they were at the Akabeko. "I'm coming. Don't go anywhere." She hung up and grabbed a jacket before jumping in her car.

Not five minutes later, she pulled up in front of their favorite restaurant. She stepped out as the group staggered out the front door. She walked over to them and held out her hands. "Key."

They all looked at her as if she were crazy. "Kaoru, you should have joined as sooner." Misao giggled.

Kaoru looked behind them and saw Aoshi roll his eyes. "Did you go drinking with them as well?"

"No." He answered. "I arrived about ten minutes ago. Misao called me and started crying after I hung up on her." He sighed in irritation.

"Do you want to drive half of them home and I'll drive the others?" She asked, hoping he would agree.

"That's fine." He grabbed Misao's arm and getting Sano's attention. "Let's go, you two."

Kaoru thought that Sano would put up a fight about being driven home, but he went willingly.

Kaoru held out her hand again. "Keys."

"No." Megumi said. "I'm fine."

"Megumi."

She smirked. "Kaoru."

It was late and Kaoru was getting a little irritated. "Megumi, give me the damn keys!"

Megumi and Kenshin widened their eyes. "Fine." She graciously handed them over.

"Kenshin, I need your keys."

"I don't need you to drive me home."

"I'm not letting you drive home drunk." She took a step towards him.

He pushed his hand into his pocket; probably pushing his keys deeper. "I'm fine."

"No, you aren't." She'd probably regret this later, but she boldly stepped up to him, pulled his hand out of his pocket and shoved her hands in them, pulling out the keys. She dangled them in front of his face for a second before shoving them in her shirt. She wasn't going to risk putting them in her pocket, like he had. His eyes widened again, but he didn't say anything. "Now... get in the car." She made her way to the driver's side and got in. The two followed quickly.

"I can't believe you guys got drunk." She sighed as she drove them home.

"You should believe it. You used to do it too, remember? Tomoe used to drive you home. Did you take her place all of a sudden?" Megumi asked, oblivious to how Kaoru reacted.

Kaoru's hands tightened on the steering wheel a bit, but she kept her mouth shut. The rest of the ride was silent as she dropped Megumi off.

"What about my keys?" She complained.

"I'll be here early to drop you off at your car." She replied before she sent Megumi inside; afterwards driving off towards Kenshin's house.

"You know she didn't mean what she said." He commented into the silence.

"What do you mean?" She glanced at him.

"About taking Tomoe's place."

Kaoru took a deep breath. "I'm not trying to. It's still difficult, though."

"I know." He whispered. "I see how it bothers you, but I'm not sure what to say. I don't want to bother you about it. I feel like if I do, then I'll just be bringing it all to the forefront again. That's not what I want."

"I thought you were just ignoring me." She admitted.

"No. I just don't want to be the reason that you're constantly hurting over this."

"You help more than you know." She said, keeping her eyes on the road.

He didn't say anything as she continued to drive to his house. She pulled into his driveway what seemed like an eternity later. "I'll come pick you up so that you can get your car."

He shook his head. "I need my keys. They have my house keys on them. Unlike Megumi's family, I have to let myself in."

Kaoru stared at him for a moment before pulling his keys out of his shirt. She held them out to him; embarrassed.

He smiled gently. "Why did you put them in your shirt?"

"I took them out of your pocket. If I could do that, what's to say that you couldn't take them back?"

"I didn't even think about it." His smile widened.

"It was precautionary." She stuck her tongue out at him.

In that moment, he leaned forward and placed his lips against hers. Kaoru was startled, but surprisingly didn't pull away. She pressed her lips against his, firmly. Several moments later, he pulled back but pressed his forehead against hers.

"Could I use the excuse that I'm drunk?" He partly joked.

"What excuse would I have?" She whispered. He stared at her for a moment, but didn't answer.

He placed a small kiss on her lips again, before stepping out of the car. He turned towards her one last time. "I'll see you tomorrow."

* * *

**_Two chapters in one night?! YES!_**

**_... Okay, it's more like a chapter and a half, but whatever. This rocks. I totally did the "wing it" thing on this chapter. I know where I'm going, but how to waste time until where I want to be? This was amazing! I love this chapter. Hehehe. The things I have in store for all of you. (smiles)_**

**_I hope you all enjoyed this wonderful chapter. Critique? _**

**_-K_**


	5. Chance of a New Life

_**First and foremost: I would like to address a reviewer from one of my previous stories. Dear whoever posted a review about Soul Eater. I would love to write a fanfiction for Soul and Maka, really I would. Honestly, I need to watch Soul Eater so I can get a better feel of their character and see how I could put them together without it being cliche or anything. I will definitely have that as a project though. (Smiles). Thank you for asking for that though. **_

_**Side note: If you would like me to write a fanfiction for a certain anime, please, feel free to ask. If I've heard of it and/or have seen it, I will definitely try. If I haven't seen it, it'll probably take me a bit longer. But like I said, please, feel free. **_

_**Anyway, on to chapter five of "The Purporse". As always: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin. Unfortunately. I do own the story line, luckily (that would be plagiarism otherwise).**_

* * *

The kiss still lingered on Kaoru's lips as she walked into her home. She almost walked up the stairs, but her father caught her eye. "Kaoru." He called out to her.

She turned and saw him and Tae sitting at the table, like always. Why were they up this late? She abandoned the stairs as she made her way towards them. "What are you two doing?"

"We were talking." He stated. "I received a job offer today, and I want to talk to you about it." He looked at Tae, and she returned his nervous gaze.

"What is it?" Kaoru pulled out a chair and sat beside her father.

"It's located in Kyoto." He stated, not wanting to drag this out. "We would be relocating... you would be transferring schools."

She sat silently. _What?_ Her mind screamed. "I- I... What?" Her voice was breathy.

"I know that this is sudden and it's a lot to think about. I have to do what's best for all of us." He reached out to pat her arm.

She jerked away from him. "All of us? What do you mean all of us?" She looked at Tae. _Oh._ Tae would be moving with them. Of course. "How is this what's best? I grew up here. All of my friends are here. Tomoe's here... Mom's here. Why would you want to leave?"

Her father stood up, towering over her. "I'm the head of this household." His voice boomed before he calmed down. "Sometimes you have to let go of the past, Kaoru."

"How can you let that go?" She whispered. "They're a part of me... and I thought mom was a part of you." She trailed off.

He sighed. "Kaoru, I will always love your mother, but she isn't here anymore. It's like... well, it's like holding on to a corpse. I love Tae, and I wish you would see and accept that."

In a moment of weakness, Kaoru looked at Tae and then back at her father. "She will never take mom's place."

"I'm not trying to, sweetie." Tae stood up finally, coming around the table to face Kaoru. "I may not have known your mother, but I respect her enough never to try to take her place in your family. I'm just an addition."

Kaoru looked towards the ground, furious. "So what is this? Some sort of confession and marriage proposal?"

"When it's a marriage proposal, I'll get down on one knee and ask." He smiled lightly at Tae. She returned his smile.

Kaoru wanted to gag. She liked Tae, but this was sickening. _You don't know what it's like. One day that could be you. _Her mind whispered, eerily. Yeah, right. She cleared her throat. "When?"

"When what?"

"When are we moving?" She sighed.

"So you're okay with this?" He sidestepped her question.

"No, not at all. But you've made it clear that I don't have a choice."

"Kaoru, I want you to be able to accept this..." He swept his hand out to gesture to all of them.

"It's not about Tae. It's about leaving Tokyo. Dad, I love it here, no matter how many bad memories there are. The good ones still beat out the bad." Her father said nothing in return. "I'm going to bed. I have to go to school tomorrow." She turned to go to her room.

"I was hoping you could stay home and pack." He called behind her.

She froze at the stairs. "That soon, huh?"

"I'm sorry." He said.

She just went to her room and cried. The earlier happiness she felt completely forgotten.

The next day, she received a call from Kenshin but she didn't answer.

_"Hey," _he talked calmly to her voicemail. _"Megumi needs her keys back. She's pissed that you didn't pick her up like you said you would. I hope you aren't ditching because of what happened last night."_ He hung up.

She threw her phone on the bed, wanting to scream in frustration. Oh she was ditching because of what happened last night; just not what happened with him. If she could repeat that part, she would. Her cheeks flushed at the thought.

She looked around her room; she'd barely packed at all. She couldn't do this... she couldn't.

Making her way downstairs she found Tae and her father packing up the living room. "Dad." She said by the stairway.

They both looked up. "What is it? Are you finished?"

Kaoru shook her head. "I can't do this." They gave her a confused look. She gestured to their packing. "This, I can't do it. If you want to move, that's your decision and I respect that, but I can't leave."

"Kaoru." He sighed. "You don't have a choice."

"Of course I have a choice!" She raised her voice as she took a step back. "Dad, I'm graduating in a few months. After that, I'll do what I have to, to live on my own." She took another step back. "Respect that."

She turned her back towards him but felt him tug on her arm. "Kaoru." He growled. "Get your ass upstairs and pack."

"No." She turned towards him. "I refuse." She was being difficult and probably childish, but she couldn't leave.

He threatened her; something he'd never done before.

"Is that supposed to scare me?" She asked, looking back and forth between her father and Tae. She looked just as lost Kaoru felt.

"Don't force my hand."

"I'm not leaving, dad." She yanked her arm out of grasp roughly. It was disrespect on a level she'd never shown before. In a moment of rage and weakness, he slapped her. Her face slammed to the side due to the force.

Tae shouted in disbelief and Kaoru's eyes watered. She didn't wait for him to say anything, she turned on her heel, grabbed her jacket that lay on the back of the sofa, and she ran out the door.

It was raining, of course. Pulling her jacket over her tank top, she took off, bare foot, down the road. Running as fast as she could, she soon found herself at the playground her mother used to take her to. The playground where Kaoru and Tomoe played together.

She walked over to the swing set and sat down on the wet seat. She was already soaked, so it didn't bother her too much. She began to gently push herself back and forth, as her head was bent forward. Her cheek still stung. Touching it, she felt the warmth her father's slap left. She didn't know how to react. She was upset, mad as hell, and somewhat numb. Was this it? Had she finally lost all of her family?

She wanted to reach into her pocket and pull out her phone, but sighed as she remembered that it was still on her bed. "Come on!" She screamed into the emptiness.

"What are you doing out here?"

Turning, she saw Kenshin. "What do you want?" She tried to sound angry, but she just sounded broken.

"I want to know what you're doing out here." He answered.

"I'm swinging in the rain." Stating the obvious always worked.

He went and knelt down beside her and looked into her eyes. Noticing her cheek, he lightly cupped it, and she pulled away hissing. "What happened?"

"My father got offered a job in Kyoto." She whispered.

"You're moving." He stated.

"No." She shook her head. "I started packing my room, and I couldn't do it."

"Because of Tomoe?" He asked.

She looked into his eyes. "Because of everyone." She admitted. "Because of Misao, Megumi, Sano, Aoshi, my mom, Tomoe... and you." His eyes widened. "I don't want to leave any of you."

"So how did this happen?" He pointed to her cheek.

"My father doesn't take well to defiance. I refused to pack to leave with him and words were said. He hit me and I left."

"Is that why you weren't in class?" He asked.

She smiled. "I'm not avoiding you." She knew what he was getting at.

"I'm glad. I want to apologize for last night. That was incredibly forward and not at all appropriate."

_Because you're my dead best friend's boyfriend._ "I didn't push you away." It just slipped out and she blushed crimson.

He gave her a small smile. "I was wrong about you." He had said it before, but he let it out anyway.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, when Tomoe was alive. Before I knew anything about you. I judged you by what you showed on the surface, but not who you really were."

"And now you see my differently."

He nodded. "Yes. I like the you that I know now."

She leaned forward and placed her forehead against his.

He dropped to his knees in front of her and rested his arms on her legs. Leaning forward, he touched his lips to hers. It was the second day in a row that he'd kissed her and she really liked it.

Gently, he slipped his tongue into her mouth and she jerked back, surprised.

He smiled. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to push you."

"No, I was just surprised." She smiled. She gently pressed her lips against his cheek. "Thank you for being so considerate though."

"Come on. Let me take you home." He stood and held out his hand. She took it and he pulled her up, into his arms. They were both soaked.

He walked her to his car and she froze. "What is it?"

"I'm soaking wet. I don't want to ruin your seats."

He smiled. "It's fine. I promise." He opened the door and gently pushed her in. He made his way to the other side and slid it beside her. "Do you need anything?"

"I don't know. I'm not moving to Kyoto. I'll see what my dad says. If he decides that he and Tae are going to move, I'll just find a place to stay here until graduation." She shrugged.

"If you need anything, you'll let me know?" He pushed her bangs out of her face.

"I will." She smiled. The rest of the ride was in comfortable silence. When they pulled up, her father and Tae were walking outside to meet them.

"Kaoru, I apologize for earlier. I'm just... just stressed." He sighed.

"Please don't ask me to leave." She begged. "I can't."

"There's nothing for you here anymore." He blurted.

Kaoru gave him a strange look as she made her way to Kenshin's side. "That's not true and you know it. I have Kenshin, Misao and everyone else."

"You're just holding on to them to hold on to Tomoe. I know it's difficult, but a new life will be good for you."

She opened her mouth, but Kenshin wrapped his arm around her waist. "Mr. Kamiya, I realize what a tight spot that you're put in. You want this promotion but you don't want to leave your daughter. Maybe you're holding on to her to keep your wife close to your heart. She is, after all, a part of her. But she's growing up. Maybe it's time for her to start her own life. Just because she's not by your side doesn't mean she won't be here, waiting to hear from you."

"Kenshin Himura, was it?" He nodded. "I will not leave my daughter to here to fend for herself."

"She can come live with me." He stated. Kaoru whipped her head up to look at him. He shrugged. "It's a big house. A lot of spare rooms and the only ones who live there are my uncle and I." He looked down at her. "You're more than welcome to come live with me."

"Now wait a minute-" Her father started.

"Dad... think about it. A new life for you and Tae. That's what you want. It's not what I want. Let me choose my own life. Please." She begged.

Tae went to her father's side and whispered in his ear. He turned and they whispered to each other.

Kaoru looked up at Kenshin. "Are you sure that it's okay?" She asked.

"It's fine." He smiled.

Her father turned back towards them and he sighed. "We can see how it goes." He conceded. "If it goes badly, you can always call me. I'll come and get you."

Kaoru walked to her father and hugged him. "Thank you." She whispered into his ear. "I love you."

* * *

_**I hope you have all enjoyed my new chapter. I loved it, I'm sure. (smiles)**_

_**Okay, I would like to get out of fanfiction for a second and mention something that I've been reading to expand my horizons as far as writing style goes. Fifty Shades of Grey. What. The. Eff. No, seriously. I am awkwardly interested and freaked out by the story line at the same time. I cheated, not even going to lie. I went and saw how the ending went. I'm not sure how we started at as "fuck... hard" (because remember, kiddies, it's not love making) to (SPOILER) being married with a babies. (END SPOILER). So really, I just wanted to give my input. Not inspirational for these at all. If I ever want to write some kinky BDSM- Dom/Sub thing, I know what to use as reference. **_

_**Okay, no, not really. I wasn't very impressed and it was highly unrealistic. In the words of reviewer Katrina Lumsden, he pretty much jackhammers her hymen and she walks away with a passing, pleasant soreness? **_

_**Not hardly. Okay, moving on. Back to Fanfiction. Seriously. I hope you all enjoyed this new chapter. Critiques.**_

_**-K**_


	6. Truth

**_Dear Guest who said they moved too fast: Just assume that months have passed, please. In real life, that would be so incredibly far-fetched, but here in my RK world, it totally makes sense. (laughs)_**

**_Anyway, I hope you're all enjoying this. The last chapter I thought up last night and ended up writing this morning before school. Interestingly enough, what I wrote is NOT what I thought up. So we're both in the same boat about where this is going. It'll be interesting though. (Smiles). _**

**_I do not own Rurouni Kenshin or it's characters. Anyway, enjoy! _**

* * *

Kaoru was amazed at how quickly everything went. Within two weeks, Tae and her father moved out of Tokyo and made their way to Kyoto, while Kaoru stayed with Kenshin. Everyone had been there to help her move and she was so incredibly thankful.

She had never met anyone in Kenshin's family before, but while they were moving her in, she met his ever elusive uncle.

"Hiko, this is Kaoru." He introduced. "Kaoru, this is my uncle, Hiko."

Kaoru smiled and held out her hand. "It's nice to meet you."

He eyed her hand and quickly shook it before his hand fell back to his side. "A pleasure." He replied. "So you're the girl who will be moving in." He stated.

Kaoru nodded. "I hope I'm not intruding."

"It's a little late to be thinking that now, don't you think?"

She took a step back, and Kenshin made a noise in the back of his throat.

Hiko sighed. "No, you're not intruding."

"Are you sure?" She asked.

"Do you doubt my word?" His left eyebrow rose in curiosity.

"I don't really know you. Why should I trust your word so willingly?"

Kenshin sighed. "Kaoru."

He was interrupted as Hiko began to laugh. "You've got a lot of spirit." He smiled. "It's a pleasure. Welcome."

Sanosuke walked up to them. "Hey, a word of warning: Don't let her in the kitchen."

"Hey!" She shouted, offended.

Hiko eyed them suspiciously. "What will she do to my kitchen?"

Misao laughed as everyone else approached them. "It's more like what she'll do to your house."

Kaoru groaned. "So I'm not a kitchen person. Can you really hold that against me?"

"Do I need to make rules?" Hiko asked them.

"Yes." They answered.

"No." Kaoru glared before looking at Hiko. "I don't need rules made. I know what I can and can't make. I don't even attempt to." She looked at her friends. "Jerks."

They all laughed. Hiko gave her a smirk before he excused himself.

Her first night there, her father called to see how everything was going. She let him know that moving in was great. Everyone had helped but she missed him, and surprisingly, she missed Tae too. He let her know that they had began to move in and they missed her and they wanted her to come visit after she graduated. They talked about things that weren't important and finally the hung up.

There was a knock on her door as she began to undress. "Come in." She muffled as her shirt covered her mouth.

Kenshin opened the door and looked at her, but quickly averted his eyes. "My apologies. I didn't know you were changing."

She looked at him and smiled at his blush. "Kenshin, I don't have a shirt on, I'm not naked." Walking over to her dresser, she turned her back towards him and undid her bra before pulling a shirt on. Turning back around, she smiled and held her hands out to her side. "Better?"

"A little." He said, still averting his gaze.

She couldn't contain her small giggle. "What can I help you with?" She asked.

"I was just coming to see if you were comfortable here." He looked up.

She walked over to him. "I'm very comfortable." She looked up into his eyes. "Thank you."

He smiled at her and nodded. "Goodnight, then."

She nodded. "Goodnight."

He left her alone for the rest of the night and in the morning, he was nowhere to be found.

She wandered around the house, feeling lost. She would sit down on a chair and then stand up and go sit in another chair. Getting up, sitting down. Getting up, sitting down.

"Kaoru, find a place and sit down or get the hell out of the room." She heard Hiko growl. She looked over at him. He was sitting in an chair with a newspaper in front of his face. How had she not seen him before.

"Where's Kenshin?" She asked.

He sat his newspaper down. "He went out with Aoshi early this morning." He picked his newspaper back up.

"Oh." She said. Standing up, she went back to her room and began to organize. She put her clothes in her closet, her pictures on her night stand and items in random places. That's when she saw it: Tomoe's diary. She'd only read to entries.

Picking it up, she walked back downstairs and lay on the sofa closest to Hiko. She opened to a later entry.

_Dear Diary,_

_It's been months since I met Akira... I'm honestly falling in love with him. I don't regret my feelings for him but I feel bad about where this leaves Kenshin and I. He's been there for me through so much, and I love him... but am I in love with him? _

_I don't know. Was I ever in love with him? Again, I have no idea. _

_Akira and I had sex, and I feel terrible about it. It was amazing. The way he makes me feel is amazing, but Kenshin... how do break that to him? Can I? I wish. I wish I could talk to Kaoru, but I still haven't gotten the courage. Would she be disappointed? Probably. I don't want her to see this side of me..._

_How do I get through this?_

Kaoru scowled at the news. She slept with Akira? She quickly read another entry and her eyes bulged. Tomoe got pregnant, but had a miscarriage. She also had a secret marriage to Akira; for her family. How had they not known? She turned to Hiko. "Can I ask you a question?"

He looked over the top of his paper. "Yes."

"If you know a secret about someone that you think someone else needs to know about, would you tell them?" She asked.

"It's not really your secret to tell. Why don't you suggest that the specific person share their secret to who it will effect?" He suggested.

"Because she's gone." She whispered.

Hiko sighed and put his newspaper down. "Would you like to talk about it?"

"You don't mind?"

"No. If I can help, I will."

"Tomoe died but she didn't tell me anything." She started and he shifted in his chair. Holding up the book in her hand, she showed him. "This is her diary. Her mom gave it to me and asked me to read it with an open mind, and I did. I just didn't think I find out about the things I have." She sighed and sat up, bringing her knees to her chest. "Tomoe was married." She look at Hiko and his eyebrows shot up. Obviously he knew nothing about it either. "It was a political marriage that her father set up, but she ended up falling in love with him, or at least that's what she said." She sighed. "While they were dating, she had sex and she got pregnant. They lost the baby. She said she was going to try to explain everything to Kenshin, because she couldn't hide the pregnancy from him... but once she lost the baby, she didn't need to." She looked at Hiko. "What do I do?" She repeated Tomoe's words.

"What do you think you should do?" He asked.

"I think Kenshin should know, but I don't want to hurt him. Especially not with that." She sighed. "What do you think I should do?"

"Do what you think is right." He answered. "Think about it like this: If Kenshin finds out, would you rather him find out from you or find out from someone else, but know that you kept that from him?"

"This shouldn't bee this hard." She wanted to whine.

"Life is never easy." He reached for his paper again.

"Hey, Hiko?" He looked at her. "Thanks."

"You're welcome." He said and went back to reading.

She stood up and got dressed before heading out, telling Hiko that she would be back later. She walked around through the streets getting familiar with the streets. Somehow, she found her way to the cemetery where her mother and Tomoe were buried.

It felt like so long ago, but at the same time, just like yesterday. She didn't cry anymore, but there was still a place in her heart that missed them both dearly.

Walking down the rows, she found her mother's grave. "Hey mom." She smiled. "It's been too long. I'm sorry about that. I wanted to come sooner, but it's been hectic. I'm sure you know that, though." She smiled. "Dad moved with Tae. I think she makes him happy. He'll always love you, we both know that. But he needs to find love again. I don't want him to be lonely. I know that you're waiting for him, though. I know he misses you. I wish you were here." She breathed. "I need your help. What do I do about Tomoe and Kenshin? What about Akira? I met him, you know? He was a nice guy; kind of cryptic. I don't want anyone to get hurt, but someone has to in order to make this right." She lay down in front of the grave, feeling closer to her mom. Just basking in the silence. Finally, she got up to go find Tomoe, but not before brushing her fingers of the stone. "I love you." She murmured before she walked away; going to Tomoe's plot.

She knelt down beside her best friend. "Tomoe, Tomoe, Tomoe." She sighed. "Why didn't you come to me with this? I would have helped you in any way possible." She paused, as if waiting for an answer. She almost smiled, trying to think of what she would say in reply. Probably something about not wanting to burden her. She sat there for awhile and reminisced about their friendship and what they had been through together.

She finally left for home as the sun began to set. What an unproductive Saturday. She made her way back to the house, not yet her home, and walked in, wondering if Kenshin was back. She found Hiko in the kitchen, cooking. _How unlike him._ She thought. "Hey, is Kenshin back?" She asked.

"In the living room." He replied without looking away from what he was making.

She walked into the room. "Hey." She started, but stopped short as Aoshi and Sano were there with him.

He looked back. "Hey." He gave her a small smile. "What did you do today?"

She walked over towards them. "Not much. I talked to Hiko for a bit and then went to go visit mom and Tomoe." She smiled. "What about you?"

"We've been hanging out; talking." He replied, his gaze becoming somewhat distant.

"You had a conversation with Hiko?" Sano blurted.

"Is that so hard to believe?" She asked, looking at the three of them.

They all nodded; Kenshin raising his index finger to his lips, signalling that Hiko would hear them.

"Hiko!" She raised her voice to grab his attention. "Sanosuke is talking about you." She stuck her tongue out at him as his jaw dropped. She laughed as he said he'd be out there to beat the dumbass as soon as dinner was finished. "I'll leave you boys alone."

She walked up the stairs to her room and quickly changed before picking up Tomoe's diary yet again. She plopped on her bed and opened to different entries. None of them were very insightful about her relationship with Kenshin or Akira. She wrote about when she found out she had cancer. Akira had been with her. He had held her and told her that he would never leave her, no matter what. Kaoru's eyes widened as she read the next part.

_I know this is unfair of me, but I wish Kenshin would like Kaoru. That way I could still keep him close, but I could love Akira and only Akira._

She shook her head. "Tomoe." She whispered. She put the diary on her bed, not wanting to look at it anymore. Not right now, anyway. She walked back downstairs and saw all four men in the living room.

"Do I need to come back?" She teased, trying to hide the anxiety in her voice.

"No." Kenshin answered first; patting the spot next to him on the couch.

"I don't want to intrude." She said as she made her way to him.

"You aren't." Hiko replied as he stood up.

She smiled awkwardly at the other three. All of a sudden, a bowl of food was in her face. She took it. "Thank you."

"So, did you get your problem resolved?" Hiko asked her.

They all looked at her. "What problem?" Kenshin asked.

"I'll tell you later." She said before replying to Hiko. "I know what to do, thanks." He nodded. "Thanks for your help." She said again. He grunted.

Dinner went quickly and Aoshi and Sano stayed longer than Kaoru wanted. She wanted to tell Kenshin before she chickened out. The sun had long since set and she was tired of waiting. She would just have to tell him later. "I'm going to go up to my room." She interrupted their conversation. "Good night." She said to everyone as she made her way room and lay on her bed, moving Tomoe's diary from her sight.

* * *

"She likes you." Sano commented when he heard the bedroom door shut.

"Don't be stupid." Kenshin said in reply.

"What are you, a teenage girl?" Aoshi commented. "When do we ever 'gossip' about who could possibly like who?"

"Who said we were gossiping? I'm telling you, she likes you." He grinned. "Megumi thinks so too."

"You two are very close." Hiko said from his seat.

"Guys, we're just friends. We've had a hard year." He didn't say any more than that.

"You want her." Sano blurted, receiving glares from Aoshi and Kenshin. Hiko snorted.

"Where the hell did that come from?" Aoshi asked.

"Oh come on. You know they've done something. I saw that kiss, Kenshin." He finally admitted.

Hiko choked on his drink. "What kiss?"

"None of your business." Kenshin growled.

"Enough." Aoshi sighed. "He obviously doesn't want to talk about it."

"Party pooper." Sano muttered.

Kenshin switched topics, not wanting to talk about him and Kaoru any more. They finally left, after what felt like an eternity. Aoshi turned towards him as he began to shut the door.

"Kenshin, she's a good choice." He commented. "Tomoe would be pleased with your choice."

Kenshin nodded. "I know." He gave a hint of a smile. "Thanks."

After he said a few words to his uncle, Kenshin made his way up the stairs, hoping that Kaoru was still awake.

* * *

There was a knock on her door, and she immediately knew it was Kenshin. Sliding off her bed, she opened the door and stepped aside for him to come in.

"Hey." She smiled.

"Hey. Sorry it took them so long to leave." He turned to look at her.

She shut her door, and took his hand, pulling him to the bed to sit next to her. "Don't apologize. We're all friends. As long as you want them here, why shouldn't they be?"

He didn't reply. "What was your problem from earlier?" He asked, changing the subject.

"I'm a little scared to tell you." She admitted, pulling her chin down to look at the floor.

"Why?" He asked, gripping her chin to make her meet his gaze.

They stared at each other for a minute before he cursed and stood up, releasing his hold on her.

"What is it?" She asked.

"This." He gestured between the two of them. "What is this?"

"What do you mean?" She looked confused as she stood up.

"What are we?" He asked bluntly.

Her eyes grew wide. She opened her mouth, but no sound came out. She opened it again, but still nothing. She shook her head. "I don't know." She leaned over her bed and grabbed Tomoe's diary. Turning to a specific entry, she handed it over to him. "I was hoping you could tell me. I want you to read this first, though."

He took it and scanned the page. His eyes widened, then darkened. he turned to the next page scanned it and then turned to the next.

She tried to grab the book. "Kenshin, enough." He dodged her hands as he turned the page. Everything about Tomoe was becoming exposed. "Kenshin!" She shouted. He was getting dangerously close to where Kaoru had left off. "Please, stop."

He was there. She noticed the bend at the top of the page. _Oh god..._ She was going to be sick.

His eyes darkened. He looked up at her and she swore she saw amber. "What is this?"

She took a step back. "It's Tomoe's diary." She answered. "Her mother wanted me to read it." She licked her lips. "That day that you guys got drunk."

"Why didn't you tell me?" He growled.

"I didn't want to hurt you." She felt her chest tighten.

"What did you think keeping this from me would do?!" His voice boomed around her.

"I don't know, okay?!" She yelled back. "Did you think keeping this from you would be easy?! I have struggled with the decision to tell you for weeks. I had no one to turn to! How could I betray Tomoe by sharing her secrets? How could I betray you by telling someone else something that was only your business?" She choked. She hated herself for breaking so easily.

"Your tears aren't going to save you." He growled again.

He was pissed, but he had the right to be. "They aren't meant to." She wiped at them angrily. "I told you what I needed to and you've made it obvious about where that leaves us. " She took the book from his hand and put it back where she had got it.

"I guess that answers that." He said before walking out, leaving her door wide open. He walked down the stairs, and she heard the front door slam.

* * *

_**This chapter seriously shocked me. NOT where I was headed at all. I was thinking, maybe I'll wrap this story up in the next chapter or so. Heck. No. More to come. Not sure how much more. I hope you enjoy this wonderful chapter. **_

**_As always, thank you all so much. (Smiles)_**

_**-K**_


	7. Answers

**_Replies to reviews: _**

**_whimsical-nightmares: Thank you for saying all of that. I really, really try my hardest with these. I hate to go back and reread my work, because I always find something wrong with it. It's nice to know that they're appreciated the first time through. (Smiles)  
_**

**_Mandy111: Oh believe me, I think how Kaoru reacted to the situation was understandable as well. I think (yes, think) that I'm trying to express that in serious situations that men can overreact to these things as well. They can be petty and jealous, just like women. I was so surprised by Hiko's words of wisdom, and I had Kaoru take the words to heart. I'm not sure how she's going to react to Kenshin's hurtful words/actions. I guess we'll find out now, huh? _**

**_As always, I own no Rurouni Kenshin. I love it though. Go figure. Anyway, enjoy chapter 7. _**

* * *

Kaoru stared at the door for a minute, not sure of what to do. She shook her head in frustration. "Shit." She quickly made her way down the stairs and was stopped by Hiko.

"What happened?" He asked, concerned.

"I showed him what Tomoe hid from him. He got pissed and stormed off." She tried to go around him, but he blocked her.

"Kaoru, let him cool off." He warned.

"I can't do that." His brows shot up at her reply. "I just mean I can't leave him alone like that. I need to explain to him. I need..." She trailed off, not sure what else to say.

Hiko nodded and stepped out of her way. "He didn't take his car. He shouldn't be too far." He said.

"Thank you." She said as she ran out the door and down to the sidewalk. Which way would he go? One way was near the highway, and the other into endless streets of the neighborhood. "Please let me be right." She whispered to herself as she took off towards the endless streets. It was late, and she knew that people were sleeping, but she had to find him. As quietly as she could, she called out to him. "Kenshin!" She cringed as the wind picked up her voice.

Her search was endless, it felt like. "Ken-" She closed her mouth as her phone went off. Misao. She really didn't have time right now, but she answered anyway.

_"What did you do to Kenshin?"_ She asked, not letting Kaoru get a word in.

"What?" She continued to jog around, looking for him.

_"He's over here at Aoshi's house. He's pissed, Kaoru. I mean, really pissed. What did you do?"_ She asked again.

"Nothing that would warrant him to be that mad at me." Kaoru replied. She understood that he was hurt, but was this really necessary. Misao didn't reply. "Can I talk to him?"

_"He doesn't want to talk to you."_ She replied matter-of-fact like.

"Can you ask him?" She sighed as she came to a stop.

She could hear Misao pull the phone away from her ear and talk to Kenshin. A moment later, she was back._ "He says he doesn't want to talk."_

She was losing her patience. She was tired, sweaty and out of breath. "Get over it, Kenshin." She breathed into the phone, taking a deep breath.

_"Why are you out of breath?"_ She asked, slightly changing the subject.

"I've been out looking for him." Wasn't it obvious?

_"Go back home, Kaoru. He'll be back tomorrow morning."_ Misao sounded cold, distant. What had Kenshin said to them?

She wasn't going to deal with this. She didn't even reply as she hung up. That's right; she hung up on Misao Makimachi, and she was going to get hell over it later. She began to walk around for awhile, catching her breath, calming herself down. She was so... so mad, so hurt, so confused. Her phone went off again.

Kenshin.

She picked up the phone, but didn't say anything.

_"Kaoru?"_

"What?" She asked.

_"Why aren't you at home?"_ He asked.

"I thought you didn't want to talk." She replied.

_"Misao told me you were out looking for me. Why aren't you at home?"_

"Like you care where I am." She stated. He couldn't have it both ways. Was he mad at her or not?

_"Where are you?"_ He sighed, sounding irritated.

"It's none of your business, Kenshin." She replied.

_"Don't make me come look for you."_ He growled.

She laughed. She actually laughed. He sounded just like her father; right before he hit her. "What? Are you going to hit me when you find me?"

He was quiet. She was sure her words were shocking... and very unfair. Kenshin, even under the greatest stress, would never physically hurt her.

_"I wouldn't hurt you, Kaoru."_ He said, his voice sounded numb; like he was lost._ "Somehow I thought you would know that."_

She sighed. There was a lot of that going on. "I thought that at one time." She admitted. "But leaving hurt more than any physical blow ever could. I trusted you to understand what I was showing you." Her early feelings coming to the forefront. "I wanted you to be there to tell me everything was going to be okay. I hoped that you could help me see why I hadn't known about this before. I needed you and you left... in a rage, no less. How am I supposed to know that you wouldn't hurt me when you already have?" There were no words from him, and for the second time that night, she had hung up on someone.

She made her way back to Hiko's house, but only to grab a few things. She walked in and he was there, asking her if she found him. "Yeah, and it didn't go well. I'm going to my dad's for a few days. I just came to grab a few things."

"Why don't you go in the morning? It's late, and Kyoto is a ways away." He tried to reason with her.

"By the time morning comes, Kenshin could be back and I'm not ready to deal with that yet. The drive will be good for me. I need to cool off." She ran upstairs and grabbed a few things.

"Call before you come home."

She smiled. He understood her. Even though she needed an escape, he still considered this her home. "Thanks, I will."

"Oh, Kaoru." She turned towards him, and he pulled out some money and tried to hand it to her.

"Oh, no. I couldn't." She tried to decline.

"Take it. You'll need it for gas." She still didn't want it. "I'm not taking no for an answer."

She sighed, yet again. "Thanks." She took it, gave him a quick and unexpected hug before she was out the door.

* * *

She had called her father to let him know that she was on her way. By the time she arrived, she was exhausted. She was ready for sleep. Honestly, she was surprised she hadn't passed out on the road. When Kaoru had arrived, her father came out to help her in. He gave her a big hug. "I've missed you." He smiled as he held his little girl in his arms.

"I missed you too, daddy." It felt good to see her dad. More than she expected.

"What happened?" He asked.

"Darling, why don't you let her explain later. Can't you see she's tired?" They turned to see Tae in the bedroom doorway.

"Hey Tae." Kaoru smiled as she made her way over to her and gave her a hug.

"How are you?" She asked.

Kaoru smiled. "Exhausted."

"Well let's get you to bed then." They helped her situate into the room they had cleared out for her, and as soon as the door was shut, she was out.

The next morning, she explained the situation about Kenshin to the two of them. "I can't say that my coming to Kyoto was purely to see you, though it is a wonderful bonus." She smiled, embarrassed.

"And why did you come to Kyoto, other than to see us?" Her father asked.

"Akira Kiyosato lives here. I wanted to see if I could meet with him to see what he had to say about Tomoe. To see what he knew that I didn't."

Tae looked at her father. He cleared his throat. "I think I can help you with that."

She sat back in disbelief. "How?"

"Mr. Kiyosato is my boss." He smiled at her shocked expression. "I can call him, if you'd like."

"Please." She smiled. When he pulled out his phone, she held her hand up. "I didn't mean right now. It's still pretty early."

Her father shook his head. "Mr. Kiyosato gets up rather early. He doesn't like to procrastinate. Everything that needs to be done that day is done in the morning." He opened his phone and called Akira. On the third ring, he picked up.

"Mr. Kiyosato." He laughed at something Akira said. "Yes, that's right." He paused. "I have someone here who would like to talk to you about something." Another pause. "About your wife." Her father pulled the phone away from his ear and handed it to Kaoru. "He'd like to talk to you."

She held the phone up to her ear. "Mr. Kiyosato. I'm not sure if you remember me. I'm Kaoru Kamiya."

_"Of course I remember you, Miss Kamiya. How can I help you?"_ He asked.

"Are you free in the next few days? I'd like to talk to you about Tomoe." She confessed. "I found her diary. I know who you are, but there's only so much a piece of paper can tell me."

_"Are you free today?"_ He asked, surprising her.

"Yes sir. Just tell me when and where."

_"The restaurant across from the Aoiya. In about two hours. Is that enough time?"_

"More than enough." She replied.

_"Wonderful."_ He said._ "I'll see you then."_ He hung up.

"I guess we're talking earlier than expected." She commented, looking at the phone.

"Are you leaving after that?" Her father asked.

"I won't leave until tomorrow. I do have to go to school." She was so close to graduating.

Her father nodded. "Go get ready." He smiled.

* * *

Two hours passed a lot slower than she thought. She was at the restaurant quite early, but she found ways to pass the time.

There was an old couple across from her that would lean in a kiss and laugh with each other. A few seats down there was a little boy who squealed and clapped his hands every time a slightly older boy blew bubbles in his drink.

A shadow fell over her, she looked up to see Akira. "It's nice to see you again." He smiled at her.

"Likewise." She replied before gesturing to the seat across from her. "Have a seat."

"Thank you." He sat down. "What do you want to know?"

"Why didn't she tell us?" She bluntly asked. No need to beat around the bush.

"That's not something I can answer." He shrugged.

"Don't give me that." Kaoru shook her head. "By her words, you were the sun, the moon and stars to her. Honestly, I'd be surprised if she kept anything away from you."

"That's presumptuous of you." Akira commented. They were quickly interrupted as a waitress came to take their drink order.

"Did you know about Kenshin?" She asked.

"Yes."

"Did you know about pregnancies?"

"Yes."

"Did you know that they might not have been yours?"

"Yes." He admitted.

"Then how could you not know why she didn't tell us?"

He sighed as the waitress brought back their drinks and took the order for lunch. "For obvious reasons, she couldn't tell Kenshin. She didn't want to hurt him." He paused. "She couldn't tell you because you thought too highly of her."

"What?" Kaoru asked in disbelief.

"You put her on a pedestal. You thought her perfect, and she didn't want you to be disappointed in her. She got pregnant, and she panicked. She told me she couldn't face you like that." He shook his head, a sad smile touched his lips. "She was honestly more worried about how you would react than how I or Kenshin would possibly handle the situation." He paused. "Even though I had fallen in love with her, I found it disgusting."

Kaoru sat back in shock. "I never realized that. She was my best friend, and I would have done anything for her, but I didn't realize she thought I had placed her on a pedestal..."

They sat in silence.

"Why couldn't she break up with Kenshin?"

He gave a small smile. "How do you know she chose me over Kenshin?"

"She wrote about it."

He gave her a curious look. "What do you mean?"

"In her diary; she wrote about how she wished that Kenshin would choose me instead of her. That way she could still have him close to her, but she could love him without being in love with him." His eyebrows shot up. "You didn't know?"

Akira shook his head. "No, I didn't know." He reached across the table and took her hands in his. "Thank you for telling me that. I can't begin to tell you how happy that makes me."

"You're welcome." She replied slowly, not sure what had just happened.

"Do you believe in soul mates?" He asked her.

Kaoru was somewhat startled by the new question. "Yes."

"Do you believe that someone can be in love with more than one person?" He asked.

"No." She replied quickly. He asked her why and she was more than happy to answer. "If you have a soul mate, you can only ever truly be in love with that person. Every other person you feel that you're in love with is just an illusion. You can genuinely love thousands of people to your hearts' content, but you can only ever truly be in love with one person." She explained.

Akira looked deep in thought. "And how do you decide if that person is your soul mate?"

Kaoru shook her head and sighed. "I don't know." Honesty. "Somewhat you can't live without. Someone that can never be replaced. Someone you want to grow old with and see life through, with. Someone you love endlessly, in spite of knowing their flaws and sins." She shrugged. "I wish I could give you a better answer, but that's all I have."

Soon their food was brought out to them, and they ate, all the while continuing to talk about Tomoe. They told stories of her life and their times together. Some were sad and others were funny.

"Are you mad at her?" He finally asked her.

"For what?" Kaoru asked.

"For not telling you."

Kaoru looked down at her hands. "No. I'm hurt that she didn't think she could come to me, but I'm not mad at her." She looked into his eyes. "How can I be mad at someone for being in love with someone?"

"You think she was in love with me?" He asked. "Even as her secret?"

"Yes. Even if she couldn't express how much she loved you with her voice, she did with her words. I read how she felt about you. It was what she felt for Kenshin, only a thousand times more." She smiled. "I believe that."

He smiled. "Thank you."

After that, he escorted her back to her father's house. Her father invited him to stay, but he had work to be done. Before leaving, he gave Kaoru his number. "If you ever need anything, just call."

"But-"

"Whether or not Tomoe is physically here, she's still my wife. And I would do anything for her and her family."

She couldn't help it; without thinking, she stepped forward and hugged him. "You were the right person for her." Kaoru whispered against his shoulder. "I'm just sorry that none of us got to see what it grew in to."

He thanked her again before leaving. The rest of the day Kaoru spent with her father and Tae. They caught up on what was happening in their lives. Kaoru left out Tomoe's drama as much as she could. The next day, she headed home.

Home.

The word brought butterflies to her stomach. Even away for a day, she was anxious to get there. She didn't care if she and Kenshin fought; she didn't care if they didn't talk at all. She was just ready to be back.

She called Hiko on the way home, just like she said she would.

_"Hello?"_

She froze. It was Kenshin. "Hey, is Hiko there?" Nothing like awkward.

_"No, he went out for a bit. Are you on your way home?"_ He asked. It sounded like it was just a formality more than that he actually meant it.

"Yeah. I'll be home in a few hours."

_"See you then."_ With that, he hung up.

The drive was lonely and very tiring. She got back at a better time than what she arrived in Kyoto. Pulling into the driveway, she noticed that their friends were over. Great. She was too tired to deal with anyone. Maybe they would give her the cold shoulder so she could go to sleep. As she got out of the car, Hiko pulled in beside her.

"Welcome back." He said as he approached her.

"Thanks." She yawned. "I can go to bed, right?"

"Did you not sleep?" He asked, sounding a bit worried.

She smiled. "I have a hard time sleeping if I'm not at home. It just isn't the same."

He smiled. "I understand." Hiko grabbed her things for her as he walked her in.

The party was in the living room, she noticed, as she made her way to the stairs. "Hey." She waved at everyone before she took the first step up the stairs.

"That's all we get is a 'hey'?" Megumi asked?

She looked over her shoulder. "I'm about to pass out. You're lucky if you get a grunt." She made her way up the stairs and into her room. Falling onto her bed, she fell into a much needed deep sleep.

When she awoke, she noticed a deep sag towards one side of the mattress. Opening her eyes, she noticed Kenshin sitting there. Kaoru rolled over and looked at him. "Hey." Her voice was a little shaky; nervous of what he was going to say.

"Hey." He almost smiled. "Welcome home."

* * *

_**Gah, I'm not even going to lie. I about died writing this chapter. I have a hard time writing scenes where my main two characters are separate from each other, but I did it. Yay! I think I can only build off of this. Hopefully. Anyway, I hope you enjoy chapter seven. I'm working my hardest to get more chapters out before the weekend (seeing as I will be gone due to an AnimeFest that I attend annually.) (Smiles)**_

_**Anyway, tell me what you think. Thanks, lovelies. **_

_**-K**_


	8. Feelings

_**Chapter 8! I know I said I was going to get this out before the weekend, but obviously that didn't happen. (Sigh) I really, really, really wanted to and I had planned to write it out on Friday, but life (aka getting ready for Animefest) got in the way and I didn't even get a chance to sit down. By the time I even potentially had time, I had about 20 minutes left at home. And even though I can type fast, I can't type a (good) 3K word chapter in 20 minutes. So, that's my bad. I'm working on it now though. Labor day. The best day to finish a story. Unless I get distracted by someone... but that shouldn't be for another few hours. He's busy right now. Hehe.**_

_**Anyway. Enough of my excuses. Rurouni Kenshin: I do not own. Boo hiss. Enjoy. (Smiles)**_

* * *

_Welcome home?_ Her mind asked. That was all he had to say to her?

She wiped the sleep out of her eyes and stifled a yawn. "Thanks." She turned her head to look at the clock. It was just past dinner time. "Did everyone go home?" She asked, looking back at him.

"No, they're still downstairs. I just wanted to come up and see how you were doing." What a change from the day before. Was he pretending that it never happened?

"About the other day-" She started, but he cut her off by holding up his hand.

"Don't." He said. "I acted wrongly." He started, avoiding her gaze. "I apologize. It wasn't you who wrote those words. It was Tomoe. I trusted her with everything that I possibly could. I..." Kenshin paused, thinking of how to go about saying what he needed to. "I feel like she betrayed me and Akira. I want to hate her, but I can't. It just hurts."

She sat up and tried to look into his amethyst eyes, but he still couldn't look at her. "Your heart or your pride?"

That got a reaction out of him. He whipped his head towards her, his eyes wide. "What?" He sounded appalled by the question.

It was her turn to look away, slightly uncomfortable. She looked towards her hands which were now playing with her comforter. "When I went to my dad's house this weekend, I also saw Akira." His eyes darkened; not with anger, but with masked sadness. He moved to get off the bed, but she reached forward and grabbed his wrist. "Wait. Hear me out."

He tried to pull his wrist out of her hold, but she held on. "Kaoru, let go."

"Listen!" She shouted making his eyes widened. She rarely yelled at him. Sure, she got mad from time to time, but hardly did she ever have this sort of reaction to anything. "I went to talk to him about Tomoe."

"I know..." He whispered before sighing. He looked at her hand, still wrapped around his wrist. He didn't move. "Tell me what he said."

"Will you sit down first?" She asked.

"Why?" He gave her a funny look.

"Because I want to make sure you actually want to listen and aren't going to bolt for the door when you hear something you don't like." She explained.

Kenshin sighed and sat down again, and in turn, she released his wrist.

She slid to the edge of the bed to sit next to him. "We talked about how Tomoe felt about Akira and how she felt about you. Everything that you read, we talked about. He told me about his time with her, and I told him ours. We talked about her pregnancies and how they could have been yours."

He looked at her. "No, they weren't. Every pregnancy she had... they were his."

Kaoru's eyebrows shot up. "What?"

"Tomoe and I rarely had sex and if we did, we used a condom." He surprised her. "At one point in time, Tomoe became distant. Every thought imaginable came into mind. Was she cheating on me? Did she want to break up? Was she not satisfied?" He gave a humorless laugh. "I never wanted to be burdened with such a responsibility at such a young age." He looked in Kaoru's eyes; it was like looking into her soul. "Everything quickly went back to normal, but in the back of my mind, I was still paranoid about what it could have been."

"Did you fall out of love with Tomoe?" Kaoru asked.

Kenshin shook his head. "No. I was determined to spend the rest of my life with her. I guess Akira felt the same way."

She looked away from him; heartsick at the words that escaped her mouth. "I told him that I thought they were soul mates."

"You did what?" He asked, stunned.

"Even knowing that you were in the picture, he loved her unconditionally. He wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. They were married, Kenshin. Even after all this time, she's still alive to him. He still honors the vows he made to her. The way he talks about her... he's never once doubted her." She received a glare from him at that. "You had every right to suspect her because she did cheat on you. I meant to say that even knowing about everything that he did, he never once doubted her feelings. He was willing to wait forever for her. Could you have done that?"

Kenshin sighed, looking at the wall in front of him. "No. I don't like competing for someone's affections."

Kaoru was silent for a moment. "I was surprised when I found out that she was married. She used to be all about you." She smiled at the memory.

"What do you mean?" Kenshin looked at her again.

Kaoru lay back to look at the ceiling. "We had just started junior high. She had met you a few weeks earlier and every chance she got, she would talk about you. When mom was alive, she would listen in the place of Tomoe's own mother, who, even back then, was never home. She would smile and tell Tomoe all these things that she could say to you, but that she had to be sincere in her feelings." She chuckled to herself. "After that, she had me find out where you hung out with friends and what your usual routine was." She looked at him from her place on the bed, and his eyes were wide. He had no idea. "Honestly, it was a lot easier than I thought. You didn't know I existed so I could always follow you without you noticing. I would come back and tell Tomoe everything that I could about you."

Kenshin lay down beside her and she continued her memory. "Mom died a year later." She wrapped her arms around herself, recalling the memory. "It was a hard time. I couldn't have made it without Tomoe." He already knew that, though. She turned on her side to look at him. "I couldn't have made it through that without you either." She admitted.

"You didn't even know me." He replied.

"I knew everything I could about you because of Tomoe. Even though it was a hard time in life, when I needed to be distracted from the pain, she would tell me all about you. What she had found out or what your conversations were together." Kaoru looked back at the ceiling. "At one time, I honestly thought I was in love with you." She made a noise at the back of her throat. She didn't want to look at Kenshin. She didn't want to see the expression on his face at her confession. She didn't want to feel the rejection. She had always liked Kenshin, no matter what she had verbally announced or how she acted towards him. He was with her best friend, so it was her duty to let them be happy. She couldn't have ever interfered with that.

Kenshin stared at the ceiling as well, not sure of how to reply. He never would have expected that from Kaoru. How wrong he had been about her all this time. "I did notice you." He admitted to her. She had shared so much with him, so he wanted to do the same.

She looked at him. Without any warning, she rolled over and held herself above him, looking into his eyes and blocking his view of the ceiling. "What do you mean you noticed me?"

He smiled at her outrageous gesture and look. "When you started following me. I knew you were following us; I just didn't think you were following me specifically. At first, I thought you were going to be annoying and approach us. We got that a lot, and it old very fast. After a few weeks, I just expected you to be there, so I didn't mind that you followed us, as long as you didn't approach us." Kaoru's mouth dropped open, but he went on. "After you stopped coming around, we just brushed it off without thinking about it." He looked into her blue eyes, trying to find out how she felt in her silence. "After Tomoe and I started talking frequently, I saw you again... with her. It's when she introduced us. I didn't want to humiliate you by calling you out, so I just left it at that, and formally met you then."

She looked down at him. "You couldn't have pulled me off to the side and asked me?" She smiled.

"Whether it had been us two or in front of a group, I didn't want to humiliate you in any sort of way, so I didn't." Kenshin explained. "I was definitely surprised by your personality when I did meet you though."

"Shocking, wasn't I?" She asked, smiling some more.

"Yes." Kenshin smiled back. "Very."

She rolled off of Kenshin and flopped down by him. "After mom died, I went through a wild stage. I drank a lot, even at a young age; my father never found out. Tomoe had you by then. I felt alone most of the time, so I just became this total party animal. I would go get drunk with high schoolers on the weekend. I would have sex with friends of my friends. I was a total mess." Kaoru sighed. "I stopped after a pregnancy scare. Megumi caught me throwing up in the bathroom and confronted me about it."

"You weren't pregnant though." He commented; she could feel his eyes on her.

Kaoru shook her head. "No. She asked if I was coming down with something. I was never good at lying to her. I was so scared of her calling me out on such a huge lie, that I just spilled my guts to her right then and there." She laughed at the ridiculousness of the scene. "After school she took me to an anonymous clinic. I wasn't pregnant; I just came down with the flu."

"What would you have done if you were pregnant?" Kenshin asked.

Kaoru turned her head to look at him then. She knew where he was going. Tomoe hadn't told him, and he wanted to know if she was the same. "I'm not going to lie to you. I'm not sure. If I needed help, I would have found the father and told him. I was a one night stand, though. So, I really doubt he would have cared let alone help. There would have been too much drama, so I probably would have just done it by myself." He opened his mouth, but she added on. "Had I been in a relationship, I would have told him. You're supposed to be there for each other, so I would have asked for his help."

He nodded; not sure of what else to say. He didn't want to make this any more awkward than it already potentially was.

There was a knock at the door; no doubt their friends that he had left downstairs. "Come in." Kaoru answered.

The door opened and revealed Hiko. "You're annoying friends are tearing up my living room. I suggest the two of you get out there so we can all eat." He scowled.

Kaoru leaned up on her elbows. "You haven't eaten yet?" She asked, looking between the two of them.

"No." Kenshin smiled, following suit.

"We've been waiting for you to wake up." Hiko added. "It's getting cold, though. So hurry the hell up." He finished before closing the door.

Kenshin slowing pushed himself off the bed and turned to face her. He held his hand out. "You ready?"

She nodded and took his hand and he pulled her to her feet. They began towards the door, but she stopped him. "Hey Kenshin?"

He looked back at her.

"Had I been Tomoe, I would have told you." That didn't make up for the hurt that he had felt, but she wanted him to know.

He gave her a smile and took a step toward her, wrapping his arms around her waist; placing his forehead against hers. "I know." He kissed her for the first time in what felt like such a long time. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer to hers. It had been weeks since they had been like this; since he told her father that she could move in with him.

They had been through so much in such a short time. They were hot and cold with each other sometimes, but no matter what happened this always felt right.

* * *

When they finally made it downstairs, Misao and Sano were sitting in corners, Aoshi was sitting on the sofa talking to Hiko and Megumi was in the other room, talking on the phone.

Kaoru looked to around and approached Hiko. "Why are they in a corner?"

Hiko looked at the two, momentarily noticing that they were holding hands. He gave a small smile before answering. "They were acting like children, so they're being treated like children." He looked past the two. "Are you two done?" He asked.

Misao turned around and looked at Sano and then Hiko. "Yes." She muttered, holding the face of a sulking five-year-old.

Kaoru laughed as Sano answered the same way.

"Then you may come join us adults again." He stood up as Megumi entered the room. "Dinner is ready to be served." He gestured for the boys to follow him.

"What about them?" Sano whined.

"It won't hurt you to get dinner for your girlfriend." Kenshin smiled. Aoshi rolled his eyes.

"What, they can't do it themselves?" He asked, oblivious.

"Ouch." Kaoru laughed as the four disappeared around the corner. "Sometimes I wonder who wears the pants in the relationship, Megumi." She teased.

Megumi sighed as her shoulders slumped. "I wonder the same thing sometime."

Kaoru and Misao burst into laughter.

"I wish he were as dominant in the relationship as he was in the bed." She admitted. That only made the other two laugh even harder.

"That bad, huh?" Kaoru asked sympathetically.

"He's like a completely different person." She confided in them. "I guess it's not so bad. I could have it much worse."

"Just tell his ass to man up." Misao piped in.

"It isn't that easy." She replied.

"It should be." Kaoru smiled. "But knowing Sanosuke, you're probably right."

"Why is my relationship so complicated?"

"Please, you wouldn't have it any other way." Kaoru said. "You love him and you know it."

"Oh, I know." She smiled.

"Besides, it could be worse. You could be cheating on him and him find out." Misao let slip. She quickly slammed her hand over her mouth.

"What did you say?" Kaoru asked, her eyes widening.

"Oh, nothing." She tried to back pedal.

Kaoru shook her head. "Kenshin told you."

"Well, no..." Misao started.

"Kenshin told Aoshi." Megumi said, giving the youngest of them a mocking glare. "Aoshi told Misao and she blabbed to everyone else."

"Hey-" Misao started.

"No, it's fine." Kaoru interrupted her. "As much as it was Tomoe's secret, it was Kenshin's as well. It's his right to tell who he chooses to. At least there's no secrets about who knows now, right?"

"Right." They turned to see the guys coming back into the room.

Kenshin handed Kaoru her food before he sat down beside her. Everyone began eating before Sano opened his mouth. "We've only got a few more weeks before graduation." They all looked at each other. "Do you know where you're going to college?" He asked them.

"Kyoto." Aoshi and Misao replied. They weren't separating from each other; everyone knew that.

"I'm interning at a local hospital after high school. I'll start school a little later." Megumi said. She already had a job in place. She only needed to go to school so a piece of paper could tell her she was qualified to do what she wanted.

Sano shrugged. "I don't think I'm going to college." No one was really surprised. "It's been hell getting through high school. I don't know how I would make it through university." Everyone snickered. Megumi made the comment that he didn't need to go. She would make enough to support the both of them. Everyone laughed at her embarrassed expression and Sano kissed her on the cheek, telling her that he looked forward to growing old together.

Kenshin looked down at his food. "It's either Kyoto or Tokyo. I haven't decided yet." He admitted. Like Megumi, he already had his future planned out. He only needed the paper to prove he was capable to do what he wanted. Aoshi was the same.

Kaoru only smiled. She felt a little hurt inside that they could be separating, but this was his life. Officially, they weren't anything other than friends. She looked at the group. "I'm going to Tokyo." She would be by herself, most likely. Kenshin would most likely pick Kyoto. Aoshi was going there and it gave him better opportunities than what Tokyo could.

"Are you going there because that's where Tomoe wanted to go"?" Misao asked curiously.

"Misao!" Megumi hissed.

"What? Everyone was wondering. I was just asking." She explained.

Kaoru laughed at them. "No. I'm going there because that's where my mom was."

None of her friends had known that. By the time Kaoru had come along, her mother was a stay-at-home wife and mother.

"Oh. So following in your mother's footsteps?" Sano asked.

They all looked at her.

"Not exactly." She smiled. "I'm just going to take that she taught when she worked there. Her student teacher who worked beside her is now in her place." She admitted. "From what I understand, the curriculum is still the same. Everything is the same. I just want to see how my mom lived her life when everything was okay." She explained.

"So you don't have a major picked out." Aoshi observed.

"None. I'm hoping something will come to me sooner or later."

Kenshin cut off the next person who opened their mouth. "Just do things at your own pace." He smiled. Kaoru only smiled back and they all went back to eating. Sitting in the suddenly awkward silence.

* * *

Later that night as Kaoru lay in her bed, thinking about graduation Kenshin entered her room without knocking. She looked at him and smiled. "What would you have done if I were naked?" She teased.

"I would have apologized." He said while approaching her.

She laughed as he sat down on the side of her bed. "You it make your reconsider knocking?"

"You aren't changing and you don't sleep naked, so probably not." He grinned.

"I might surprise you one day." She laughed again at his surprised expression. "So what has you walking into my room unannounced." He knew she didn't mind. If she did, she would have said something before now.

"I just came to see how you were doing." He said. "All that graduation talk kind of ended today on a bad note. School is tomorrow which makes it even worse."

"Today wasn't all bad. Graduation talk certainly isn't going to change that." She countered, thinking of their kiss. "Besides, if you think it's a bad end, today isn't over yet."

"I guess it isn't." He smiled as he leaned over her, encouraging her to meet him halfway.

Kaoru smiled as she leaned up while wrapping her hand around his neck, pulling him down to her and placed her lips against his. Every kiss until now had been soft and gentle. What they shared now was hot and demanding. All consuming; possessive. Their tongues wrestled with each other as their hands touched slid up and down each other's bodies. They needed this, but they couldn't get wrapped up in each other yet. Kenshin pulled back, but not before nipping Kaoru's lower lip.

"Thank you." Kenshin pressed his forehead to hers.

"Would you stay tonight?" She asked him, feeling bold.

"I'm always here." He said.

"You know what I mean." Kaoru said.

Kenshin smiled. "I know. I just want to see if you'll actually ask."

Her face flamed, her boldness evaporating. Her turned her head to avoid his eyes. "Would you stay in here, with me, tonight?" She asked, just above a whisper.

"Where did your fire go?" He teased.

"Embarrassment killed it." She muttered.

Kenshin laughed. He never thought her to be shy or nervous. This was definitely a new side for him. "I'll stay with you." He answered before he turned her head and kissed her again.

"You like teasing me, don't you?"

Kenshin's smile grew wider. "Yes." She blushed. "Remember when you told me earlier that you thought you were in love with me when you and Tomoe talked?" He asked.

Kaoru looked at him, curious. "Yes?"

"I'm glad you told me that. I used to think that I had feelings for you as well." He admitted. Kaoru's face flashed pain before she hid it. He gave her a sympathetic smile. "Don't worry." He told her. "They're all coming back now."

* * *

**_LONGEST. CHAPTER! Yeah! Okay, so I hope you like this. I realize this chapter and the end of last chapter have happened in the same day, but deal with it. :P This is possible because it's a fanfiction. People can fall in love in a day if they wanted to here. But they aren't going to, because that's honestly farfetched. So, yeah. I hope you all like this chapter. We're nearing the end. Not sure how near yet, but we are. Questions, comments, concerns?_**

**_-K_**


	9. Confession

**_I'm not going to lie. It's been hard to write Kenshin. Sometimes I accidentally write my name, and I have to sit there and erase it. Writing a K name and not writing my own name is very difficult. Luckily, I haven't done it too much. I wonder if I've ever done that on any papers for school... That would suck. _**

**_Anyway, here's chapter 9 of "The Purpose". I'm so excited. I've never been good at writing high school fanfictions, so this has been an interesting ride. It means I have to have a lot of time lapses. I think I'm doing good so far. If you don't-tell me. Seriously._**

**_Mandy111: She's totally more experienced. It's just... it's Kenshin. He makes her react like that. Not really knowing how he felt about her, she couldn't be sure if she wanted to travel down that path. I'm not trying to give anything away here. I promise. I just want to justify Kaoru's actions. I mean, if I kissed the guy I liked, I would be self-conscious about what the thought of me as well._**

**_Anyway. I don't own Rurouni Kenshin, though we all know this. Onward!_**

* * *

"Really?" Kaoru asked, surprised.

"Yes." Kenshin answered. He didn't want to dwell on them though. This night wasn't about his feelings- it was about their feelings. "Are you ready for bed?" He asked.

"No." She smiled. "I have to change."

"I guess I'll go change as well then." Kenshin pulled away from her and walked to the door. "I'll be back."

He left and she scrambled off of the bed and found something to sleep in. She didn't want to tell him, but she did sleep naked. Whenever he saw her, it was just so she could interact with others without being stuck in her room without communicating with anyone. She couldn't worry about it. She went to the bathroom and scrubbed her teeth. Looking back out into the hallway, making sure Kenshin wasn't there, she ran back into her room and tried to find something to sleep in. "Come on." She whispered to herself, harshly.

"Are you having an issue?" She turned to see Kenshin at the door.

"I didn't hear you come in." She squeaked.

Kenshin smirked. "Obviously." He walked towards her. "What are you looking for?" He asked, peaking into her closet behind her.

"Something to wear." Kaoru muttered to herself.

He pulled back. "What?"

She turned around to face him. "I know I was teasing before... but I really do sleep naked." She admitted, her face heating up. "I didn't really think about it when I asked you to stay."

"Then why did you ask?"

"Because I wanted you to... I didn't think you'd agree to it."

"Do you want me to now?" He asked.

"Yes!" She shouted before putting her hand over her mouth. "Sorry. Yes."

He took a step towards her. "I don't mind if you sleep naked." Kenshin said forwardly.

"Are you sure?" She asked. She wasn't sure why she would found that sleeping next to Kenshin wouldn't be a big deal. Oh, what the hell. She thought it was a huge deal, but oddly enough, she didn't seem to mind.

"I don't mind." He promised. Taking her hand in his, he led her to her bed. "What do you usually do before bed?" Kenshin asked.

"I undress and braid my hair." That was it; simple.

"Do you want me to look away?" Kenshin asked.

"If you don't mind..." Men had seen her naked before, but with Kenshin it was different. She was scared of what he thought of her.

"Not a problem." Kenshin smiled before walking to the other side of her room and finding something to look at.

She quickly braided her hair down her back and threw her clothes off and putting them into her hamper. She slid in between her sheets and told him that he could turn around.

Kenshin made his way to her. "Are you nervous?"

"Yes." Kaoru admitted. "I know I shouldn't be, but I am..."

He lay down beside her, on top of the covers. "I am too." He assured her.

Kaoru tucked the top of the covers under her arms, making sure that they would stay there and cover her from his eyes. "Why?"

"If you were some passing fling, I wouldn't care." He admitted. "I do care about you. I have feelings for you. No matter how much I've wanted to deny them, they've been there. I would always brush it off as something else, but it was you."

Kaoru looked into his eyes, seeing that he was telling the truth. She reached out and ran her fingers through his long, red hair. "You don't know what that means to me to hear you say that."

Kenshin pulled her hand out of his hair and he placed a soft kiss on her knuckles. "I think I do." He leaned forward and kissed her gently.

She pulled back, blushing.

"We don't do anything." Kenshin promised, seeing the wheels turning in her head.

Kaoru could only smile. "You can get under the covers you know."

"I don't want to make you feel uncomfortable."

"You aren't." Kaoru smiled.

He smiled back and got under the covers. "You're sure you don't mind."

"Not at all." She replied, scooting closer to him, so that he could feel her naked body against his clothed one. "Do you?"

Kenshin laughed. "No." He wrapped his arm around her and kept her close. "Good night."

She smiled as she placed her hand on top of his. "Good night."

* * *

The next few weeks went by in a blur. They were so close to graduation and Kaoru was becoming nervous. One morning, Kaoru was pulled out of class. She was needed in the front office. Misao gave her a strange look as she was excused. Kaoru shrugged her shoulders indicating that she didn't know it was for. She smiled as she saw Misao whip her cell phone under her desk.

Kaoru made her way to the office and paused as she saw Tomoe's family there. "Mrs. Yukishiro, what are you doing here?" She completely ignored Enishi.

"Oh, Kaoru. I was wondering if you had Tomoe's diary on you." She asked.

"Um, no ma'am. I keep it at home." She answered. "What brings you here?"

"Did you read it?"

Tomoe's mother was avoiding her question. "Yes."

"And you got hold of Akira?" What was she fishing for?

"Yes."

"And you're with Kenshin?" She questioned.

_Oh._ Tomoe's mother had read it as well. Of course. "Why do you want to know?"

"I told you, mother. She was with him." Enishi smiled cruelly.

Kaoru opened her mouth, but someone came up behind them. "I apologize for being late." Akira Kiyosato. He met her gaze and gave her a surprised smile. "Miss Kamiya, I didn't realize that you would be here as well."

"Hello. I go to school here. I'm not sure why I was pulled out of class, though." She looked back at their small group. "I'm sorry I haven't gotten around to calling you. I haven't had anything come up yet."

"What she means to say is that she hasn't had anything that Himura can't provide for." Enishi growled.

"Yukishiro, that was uncalled for. What Kaoru and Kenshin do are their own business. It has nothing to do with Tomoe." Akira defended.

Kaoru sighed; someone was on her side at least.

"How could her boyfriend and her best friend go behind her back?" He countered?

"Enishi-" She started.

"She was married, you prick." Kaoru whipped around at the malice she heard out of Kenshin. His eyes were amber. He was seriously pissed off.

"Fuck you." Enishi snarled.

"That's all you can come up with?" Kenshin gave a humorless laugh.

Akira stepped between the two. "Enough." He gave Enishi a slight glare. "We're at their school. Show a little respect."

Tomoe's mother stepped up. "Kaoru, I'm so sorry to have gotten you involved with this."

She took a step back and looked at everyone. "What the hell is going on?!" She yelled.

"I don't wish to keep bringing you bad news." Akira looked at both Kaoru and Kenshin. "I wanted you to know that Tomoe and I..." He paused. "We have a child."

"Bullshit." Kenshin growled. "Tomoe never carried to term. We all know that."

"You're right. We had gestational surrogacy done." He admitted.

"That means they used her egg and his sperm and put it in another person." Enishi sneered at them.

"You're the only person who actually had to look that up." Kaoru commented, blowing him off. "Where's the baby?"

"He hasn't been born yet." Akira replied, looking tired. "I didn't want to tell you because with all the information we had discussed, I didn't know how you would react." He admitted. "I went home and thought about it constantly. Finally, I asked the Yukishiro's to meet me so I could tell you." He looked around. "I didn't know I would be facing you right away."

"How far along is she?" Kenshin asked, his voice low but calm.

"Sayo is about eight months." He answered.

Kaoru's eyes widened. "Sayo is the surrogate mother?"

"That's what he said stupid." Enishi was so immature.

Kenshin stepped in front of her. "Say another word and it'll be your last." His anger was definitely still there.

"She wrote about her." Kaoru explained. "I never knew who she was."

"She's been a friend for a long time." Akira replied. "When Tomoe and I approached her about it, she was more than willing to help us." He smiled to himself. "Since Tomoe's death, she's been asking me to be more involved with the pregnancy than she was before." Akira had forgotten that the others were there. When he was talking to Kaoru, it was like talking to a part of Tomoe. He forgot about all the hardships.

Kaoru smiled as she slipped her arm through Kenshin's; drawing everyone's gaze. "That's a good thing. Your baby is getting ready for the world. He's a part of Tomoe. Sayo wants you to be close to this baby. It'll be like having her back."

He smiled at her. "Thank you." He looked at the both of them then and cleared his throat. "I, uh, actually did want to ask you both a question." He turned towards Tomoe's mother and she gave a slight nod, a shadow of a smile gracing her lips. "Would you both be his godparents?"

Their eyes widened as they looked at each other as Enishi sputtered in protest. "Are you sure?" Kaoru asked.

"I wouldn't have asked if I weren't."

"Yes." She smiled and looked at Kenshin. His eyes looked haunted. She sighed. "Give us a minute." Pulling him off to the side, she turned him to face her. "Hey, talk to me."

"I can't." He whispered.

"You can." She encouraged. "You said you couldn't hate Tomoe, even after what she did."

"How sick is that, Kaoru? Being the godfather of my dead girlfriend's husband's baby." It did sound a little sick, but he had moved on, or so she thought... apparently he hadn't.

"Is that your pride speaking?" She asked.

Kenshin sighed as he raked his hand though his hair. "Probably."

"And where does that leave us?" It probably wasn't the best time to bring it up, but she had to know. She and Kenshin had been official for the last week. For everyone else, it was new and somewhat unusual. For them, it was like life went on, the same way it had been since weeks before. They cared for each other, they fought like a married couple and they comforted each other like best friends.

He sighed. "We're still us." That was enough for her. To someone who could hear him say those words, wouldn't think much of them, but they had meant everything to her. _Us._ It meant that he would come to her if he needed anything, or if he wanted anything. If he didn't need or want, he would still come to her. Everything she said matter as well as what he said.

"So think of it as your girlfriend's godson." He sucked in his breath, giving her the wrong idea. "Kenshin, if you don't want that, just respectfully decline. He won't think any less of you."

"It's just..." He couldn't say anything.

"I won't think any less of you, either." She pulled them back towards the group. "Kenshin?" She asked.

He looked at Akira. They stared at each other for what seemed like minutes. Kenshin finally opened his mouth. "I would be honored, thank you."

Kaoru smiled up at him.

"Thank you." Akira smiled and shook both of their hands. He excused himself.

Enishi made his way up to them. "Feeling good about yourselves aren't you?"

"Leave it alone, Yukishiro." Kenshin warned.

"Enishi." They all looked back at his parents. "We're leaving."

"Give me a few minutes." He called back. He turned to face them once more.

Kaoru looked at Kenshin. "Go ahead and go back to class. I'll deal with this."

"I'm not-"

"I don't want you to do something that you'll regret." She smiled. "I'll be okay."

He looked at her and then to Enishi. Sighing he nodded. "Don't do anything stupid." He leaned down and placed his lips against hers. He straightened and made his way down the hallway.

They watched as he left. As he turned down another hallway, she turned back to Enishi. "What do you want, Yukishiro?" She was annoyed.

"You haven't told him, have you?" He grinned.

Enishi would say and do anything to make Kaoru and Kenshin's lives miserable. "He knows I've done a lot things I'm not proud of."

"Like sleeping with your best friend's brother." He added.

"I slept with you once, and I was incredibly drunk." She countered.

"You won't tell him, will you?" The satisfaction in his eyes was sickening.

Kaoru sighed. She now saw why Kenshin couldn't stand him. She'd never been around him enough to get the full affect or how annoying he really could be. She was around for Tomoe, not Enishi. She only knew him because of their relation. "If Kenshin ever asks me who I've slept with, I'll tell him."

"No you wouldn't. Just like you wouldn't tell Tomoe." He was smug. She wanted to beat the look off of his face.

Her anger snapped. "You're the one who begged like a little bitch that I not tell her. Don't pin your pansy ass decision on me." She growled. "Gah, you're sickening." She moved to walk away, but before she could, he grabbed her by the throat and slammed her against the wall.

"What did you say to me, bitch?" He roared.

He was cutting off her air; that had to be it. Him slamming her against the wall sure as hell hadn't done anything. "What, you couldn't understand my words?" She whispered out. "Do I need to repeat it in smaller form?" She wasn't scared of him in these moments. He could kill her and she felt no fear.

Noise surrounded her, but her vision blurred. She saw the door to the office swing open and someone ran out to assist her. She had no idea who it was though. They couldn't pull Enishi off of her. Looking back to Enishi's face, she saw his mouth moving, but no words were coming out. Was he talking to himself? In the distance, the bell rang. _Class._ Students were switching to their next class.

She looked back at the person who was trying to help her. It was a woman. Who was a woman who worked in the office? She looked down the hall and screamed; probably for help.

_Kenshin._ Her mind whispered. As she thought she was going to pass out, Enishi was flung off of her. She slumped against the wall helplessly. Her legs giving out on her, she slid to the floor. Air filled her lungs faster than she expected. Her ears rang as her vision became clear. Breathing deeply, she looked at who had helped her. _Aoshi._ He had Enishi on the floor, his arm pinned behind his back. She looked down the hallway, as students froze in horror at the scene as teachers tried to escort them to emergency exits. It hit her: they weren't class bells, they were emergency ones. Like someone had pulled the fire alarm.

"Aoshi." She whispered. Her throat was definitely bruised. The ringing in her ears subsiding.

The woman from the office was at her side. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Kaoru whispered. "My throat just hurts." She looked at her friend again. "Aoshi."

"This young lady is asking for you." The woman said to him.

Aoshi held Enishi, who was cursing him, as he looked at her. "How bad is it?" He asked.

How bad was what? The ringing, the soreness, what? "My throat hurts." She mouthed, her voice not reaching him.

He looked back down on Enishi and shoved him against the floor some more. "They're evacuating the school." He told her. "The police are coming. No one is allowed to enter from the front doors." He said to her. Maybe he was trying to keep her calm.

Their school had automatic locks on the outisde in the front. Unless it didn't latch, no one could get in during school hours. It was to make sure unwelcome visitors didn't wander in and to enforce making it to class on time. Kaoru could only nod as she began to relax into the wall. Her head was beginning to hurt.

She closed her eyes, and tried to go to sleep. She heard the commotion around her, but she ignored it until someone tried to move her. Her eyes shot open, as she came face to face with a police officer.

"Easy, young lady." He said soothingly. "Can you tell me your name?"

"Kaoru Kamiya." She whispered.

"Can you speak up?" He asked her.

Aoshi was at her side. "Her name is Kaoru Kamiya." He answered for her. Looking at her, he told her that Enishi was being taken into custody.

"Do you know where she lives?" The officer asked Aoshi, not giving her the chance to answer. She was trying, damn it.

"She lives with her boyfriend." He answered vaguely.

"Oh." His eyes widened. "Are you pregnant young lady?"

It wasn't popular, she would admit, but it wasn't unheard of for couples to live together before marriage. She shook her head. They hadn't done anything aside from feeling each other up and kissing.

"Do you know where I can get a hold of him or their parents?" He turned his attention back to Aoshi.

Kaoru looked around, ignoring them both. The school was empty. Everyone was outside. She sighed.

"Her boyfriend is outside. Her father lives in Kyoto. Hiko Seijiro is probably at work." She looked at them again, and noticed the officer's jaw drop. Everyone knew of Hiko. He was a very famous entrepreneur.

"I see." He looked back at her. "Don't worry young lady. We'll get you to a hospital as soon as we can." He assured her. "If you'll join your classmates outside." He suggested to Aoshi.

He began to move away, but Kaoru grabbed his wrist. His eyes widened as he looked down at Kaoru. They had never touched so intimately. It shocked him.

Her eyes watered. "Don't." Her hoarse voice held a terrified note.

"What?" He leaned down towards her mouth.

"No hospitals." She begged, her voice breaking even more. "Don't."

Aoshi relayed the message. "I'm sorry young lady, but you need to be examined." The officer replied. He gestured for her to be taken out on the gurney.

Aoshi stopped him. "Her boyfriend will want to go with her. He's the only family she has here." He stated. The officer started to refuse, but looked at her and his resolve crumbled.

"That's fine. Go find him." He nodded at the others as they continued to take her out.

The sun was bright and hurt her eyes, but being strapped down definitely restricted her movement. She shut her eyes and groaned... or tried to. She was so embarrassed.

"Kaoru." Her name was breathed from desperate lips.

Opening her eyes, she saw her friends being held off by other officers her responded to the scene. She only wanted Kenshin, though. After Aoshi made his way to him, they switched places and Kenshin was at her side in a heartbeat.

"What happened?" He asked.

She opened her mouth, but the men wheeling her out told her not to speak. "Some psycho kid came in and cut off her airway. She's lucky to be breathing right now." The man explained.

Kenshin's eyes darkened. "I'll kill him."

"Don't." She croaked and winced from the pain.

"Don't speak." He said as he stayed by her side. "I'm not leaving you." He promised.

_I didn't mean for this to happen._ She mouthed to him.

"I know, darling." He smiled softly. They loaded her in the vehicle and took off towards the hospital.

After running some tests, they placed her and Kenshin in a room. At first, she couldn't even look at him. How weak she had been against Enishi.

"I shouldn't have left." He said, looking at her.

_No. I needed to take care of something. _She replied.

"This wouldn't have happened if I hadn't have left." He continued.

_I provoked him, Kenshin. This is my fault. I pushed him even though I knew I wouldn't be able to defend myself._

"I don't care. A real man would never lay hand on a woman." He glared.

_Enishi isn't a real man. He could never be even half the man that you are._

Kenshin gave her a small smile; one that he didn't feel. He stayed silent for a minute, going over what she had said.

Kaoru waved her arm around, attempting to get his attention. He looked at her and smiled. "Cute."

She stuck her tongue out before her face turned serious. _I have to tell you something._

His smiled dropped at her serious look. He slid closer to her.

Her eyes widened. _Why did you move closer? _

"Do you want me to stay back?" He asked, worried.

Kaoru reached out and grabbed his hand and shook her head. _I want you to know something before you hear this._ He nodded. _Do you remember when I told you that I had my wild streak? That I slept with friends of friends?_ Again he nodded. Her eyes filled with tears. She didn't want to tell him, not like this... not at all. What if he walked away from her. _I was unbelievably drunk. _She paused, questioning her decision. _It was once... and I slept with Enishi. _She admitted.

His eyes widened and then darkened.

_It was before I thought I was pregnant. _She mouthed. She wanted to say these words so bad, to race through them and get it over with. She had to go slow though. If she didn't he wouldn't have any idea what she was saying. _Say something._

"Why are you telling me this?" Kenshin asked, his voice low; breathy.

_Because I wanted you to know why this happened._ She took her hand out of his and covered her mouth.

Tears rolled down her face and he looked away from her, trying to compose his anger. Finally looking at her again, he asked, "what did you say to provoke him?"

She retold her side of the story over again. Bit by bit, humiliating seconds ticked by and he sat there, stunned.

A smile actually broke out on his face and her eyes widened. _You're smiling._

"Yes, I'm smiling." He replied. "I don't care that you slept with Enishi before. As long as it hasn't been recently." He started. "I've slept with other people and am hardly naive enough to think that you haven't. I'm not dumb enough to be jealous over that piece of trash." He said. "I'm proud of you though. You stood up to Enishi, in spite of what he could have said to me, trying to hurt the both of us. It was dumb, but it was bold." He finished.

Taking her hand into his, he looked her in the eyes. "I don't care about your past. We've both had less than stellar moments, but I love you anyway." He confessed.

He looked back as a knock at the door resonated through the room. The doctor was there to deliver her news. She didn't want to ruin this moment. She tugged at his hand to get his attention. Looking back at her, he saw her lips move.

_I love you._ She let it sink in for a second before she leaned forward and placed her lips against his.

* * *

**_I lied on the last chapter. THIS IS THE LONGEST CHAPTER! Seriously, I was tired of making bullshit cutoffs. Might as well give you guys the whole scene, right? I thought it was pretty kickass, if I do say so myself. If you didn't think it was, tell me. Seriously, please, and every other begging word out there. TELL ME! Okay (smiles) moving on. _**

**_I wasn't expecting this turn. I knew I wanted some Enishi conflict, but this wasn't what I was expecting. I totally loved it. I'm sitting here clapping to myself at how brilliant this is. I'm not really full of myself, I promise, I just praise myself when I do good work. It keeps the motivation going. Anyway, I want to know what you, the reader, thought of this (potential) masterpiece. _**

**_-K_**


	10. Comparisons

**_Whimsical-nightmares: I think you read too fast. (Laughs) Akira left and the parents went outside. After Enishi was taken down, I just had him arrested. I didn't really bring them into that chapter again. I mean, all of that would be incredibly dramatic. As for updating so quickly; don't worry, it's not always that fast. Sometimes I take a really long time because I'm not sure what to write. It'll come to you in soon. (smiles) _**

**_Holy monkeys. This is almost my longest story ever. Seriously excited. Yes, it's the little things that get me. You're probably all reading this thinking I'm an idiot. I'm really a lot funnier in person. It's hard to transfer wit over the internet. Obviously. Anyway, I love all of you who have kept with me this far. Some chapters have obviously been harder than others. I'm sure you can pinpoint those. _**

**_I have been rereading this story (if you read previous statements I said I hate rereading them, so there's first time for everything). Yes, I know there are typos. Yes, I have been going back on some occasions and fixing them. They're irritating me... mainly because they're sad little ones that wouldn't even be there if I had paid attention. Really, I'm working on it. _**

**_To the next order of business. This fanfic is rated M. I'm not sure where I'm going with it yet, aside from all the cussing and flirting. Note: There might be sex. Might be. Like I said; not sure where I'm going yet. Warning: I am a horrible sex scene writer. I mean, I cringed as I wrote my last sex scene. That's how unrealistic it is (though it will never be more unrealistic than FSoG). So, if I do actually write a sex scene, it will probably suck ass. Bear with me. I'm trying to make this worth your while. I promise.  
_**

**_Anyway, after long and probably unnecessary explanations, here we go with chapter 10. I own nothing Rurouni Kenshin expect for my own story line. Enjoy my lovelies. _**

* * *

The news hadn't been bad; well, not horribly bad. There was no permanent damage, but there was definitely going to be some bruising. It wasn't going to go away for awhile and graduation was right around the corner.

Kaoru had sighed in despair. She had asked if she could skip graduation and just have her diploma delivered to her. Kenshin had only smiled at her.

Kenshin had talked to her father, assuring him that he didn't need to leave work to come see if she was alright. She was going to be around, so he was in no rush. After Hiko had shown up, so did all of the drama: threats of prison and million dollar lawsuits. Kaoru was touched that Hiko cared so much about her, but she didn't want the trouble. She didn't want special treatment just because he could make it happen. Enishi needed to be judged swiftly yet fairly. She did want an apology though. It wouldn't make anything better, but she wanted one nonetheless. Probably because she knew Enishi hated apologizing. It meant that he had been wrong.

She never got one though. Akira and the Yukishiros had apologized for him, but that's not what she wanted. Akira had become very friendly with them over the course of the weeks that passed. The baby was almost ready to join the world. Just a week left. They all smiled about the baby. He would grow without a mother, but he would always know her. They all promised that.

Kenshin had no more hard feelings towards them. He had confessed his love to Kaoru and he didn't want his hurt pride to hold back his happiness with her.

They all sat around Kenshin's one night, talking about Kaoru's accident. "Do you think Enishi will get what he deserves?" Sano asked.

"I doubt it." Kaoru sighed. Her voice was better, but an ugly bruised marred her fair skin.

Kenshin placed his arm around her shoulders. "Whether he serves time or not, he'll never get near her again." Kenshin promised.

"I'm surprised you left her." Misao replied, crossing her arms over her chest. Aoshi gently tugged on her braid and shook his head.

Kenshin's eyes turned dark. Kaoru had figured out that he wasn't always mad. It was his way of hiding that he was hurt or ashamed. She lifted her hand to her shoulder and linked fingers with Kenshin. "I asked him to give me a minute."

"Had it been Aoshi, he wouldn't have left." She said. Misao thought Aoshi was the sun and moon and sometimes it irritated her. Aoshi made mistakes too, whether Misao saw them or not.

"Yeah, well, he's not Aoshi, is he?" She snipped.

"Hey, I'm just saying..." She shrugged, leaving no doubt of what she was thinking. No one said a word. This was between the two of them.

"Yeah, well you can keep that to yourself. Kenshin left because I asked him to. He trusts my judgement. You don't even know what happened, so can you really say that you have any right to comment?" They had given their friends the gist of the situation, but they had left things out, such as Kaoru sleeping with Enishi, which had been the start of the fight.

Misao turned defensive. "Kaoru, Kenshin could have protected you. Why are you biting my head off?"

"Because you're blaming him!" Her throat began to hurt a bit. She wasn't supposed to put strain on it, but she couldn't help it. "I'm not as defenseless as to have someone have to protect me every second of the day."

"Apparently you are." Sano muttered.

Her head whipped towards him. "How exactly do you think I should have known that he was going to attack me?"

"Because he's Enishi." Misao answered, drawing her attention back.

"Misao." Aoshi tugged her braid a little harder.

There was that... "With it being a public place and all, I didn't think that would be an issue." She replied, her anger rising.

"Guys, knock it off." Kenshin said. He squeezed Kaoru's hand gently. "Stop yelling. You're going to hurt yourself."

She cleared her throat and winced. Kenshin only sighed. "I'll get her a glass." Aoshi said as he stood to go to the kitchen.

As Aoshi disappeared, Kenshin cleared his throat and stood up. "Excuse us for a minute." He said as he took Kaoru out of the room.

He took her into Hiko's empty office. He would be out for the night, so it was as private as they could get. "Kenshin what-"

He slammed his mouth over hers. Kaoru's eyes widened, before she drew him closer to her. Since they had become a couple, he had been a lot more physical with his feelings; not that she minded. She liked that he was so eager to kiss her. She also found it very charming that he explained, in his own little way, of why he kissed her. Kaoru didn't think that Kenshin realized that he did it, though.

He pulled back from her, though she kept her arms around him. "Thank you." He smiled before giving her another quick kiss.

"For what?" She asked.

"For defending me. Misao is right, of course, but thank you just the same."

She sighed. He wouldn't ever give himself a break about this. "I would have been mad at you if you hadn't left." She stated, watching his surprised reaction. "I asked you to leave. Meaning I really wanted you to. Had you stayed, it would have meant that you didn't trust me or my judgment." She kissed his cheek. "We both know what it means to be trusted."

Kenshin sighed. "I'm just sorry that he got to you." He hated to see her so limited by the pain.

Kaoru cupped his cheek, looking into his tormented eyes. "Hey," she smiled, "if this is the worst he did to me, I am definitely counting my blessings."

He looked at her for a minute, not saying anything. Finally he slightly ran his hand over her neck, barely touching it. Kaoru sucked in her breath as he leaned down and lightly kissed her bruised skin. He leaned back slowly and gave her a gentle smile. "I'm sorry if I hurt you."

He was talking about his kiss, but she wasn't sure that's all he meant. "You didn't." She smiled. Her skin was a sickening color. It was bruised, but it was in the process of healing. Purples, greens and yellows mixed together; she didn't know how he could stand looking at it.

"You're beautiful, whether your bruised or not." He answered without thinking.

Kaoru smiled at the surprise that crossed both of their faces. "I love you." She said as she gave him a hug and another quick kiss. "Let's get back to everyone. I'm sure they're tearing up Hiko's living room."

Kenshin laughed. "You're probably right." He pulled her to a stop before they entered the room. "I love you too." He whispered into her ear.

As they came back into the room, everyone looked back and them and Kaoru blushed. They totally knew what they had been doing.

"That was more than a minute." Megumi smiled.

"Shut up." Kaoru muttered.

"I don't know why you make out behind closed doors." Megumi smacked the back of Sano's head. "Gah! What? You know I'm right. We all know that's why the disappear for minutes at a time." He looked at the couple. "I'm just asking why. You don't have to hide what you do from us." He grinned as Aoshi groaned at his ignorance.

"It's called intimacy, which is best in private." Kenshin answered with ease; amused by his friend's thoughts.

It was true though. They had never kissed in front of their friends. Even if Sano had seen them kiss once, which happened before they started dating, they hadn't intentionally done it in front of him. They sat back down, and Kenshin returned his arm around her shoulder.

"Why do you want to see us kiss?" Kaoru teased.

Sano's mouth opened and then closed, not sure of what to say. Megumi smacked him again and Misao laughed. Kaoru looked over at the girl and noticed her nod. Kaoru returned the subtle gesture. Misao had apologized for her earlier outburst, and Kaoru had accepted. They smiled at each other as Kaoru leaned into Kenshin's embrace.

"Your water is by you." Aoshi startled her.

She thanked him before picking it up and taking a small sip. The water was cool on her throat and soothed the remaining strain she felt. There was silence once again.

"So, whose ready for graduation?" Misao asked out of the blue.

They all froze. It was next week. No one could answer. It was bittersweet; they would all be separating. Kaoru reached out and took Kenshin's hand again. "I'm ready for vacation." She joked. "I'll miss you guys." She smiled at them. They really were separating.

"Come with us." Misao stated.

"What?" She and Kenshin glanced at each other and then back at the group.

"Go to Kyoto; that way you won't be by yourself." Misao smiled.

"We'll stay here." Kenshin answered before Kaoru could.

Their mouths dropped open. "What?" They asked.

He looked down at Kaoru. This was for her. "I'm staying here." He told her. "I'll be going to Tokyo with you."

"But Kyoto-"

"Can teach me just as much as Tokyo can."

"But-"

"Kaoru." He smiled. "I'm not going to leave you."

Her eyes watered. She really did love him. "Thank you." She let go of his hand, only to bring it to the back of his neck and pulled his lips down to hers. It wasn't an ideal kiss; tears rolled down her face and her throat burned again, but she didn't care. Kaoru could feel his smile against her lips. Their friends gave a little cheer and let out cat calls, causing them to pull back from each other. She placed her mouth against his ear. "You're the best. I really do love you."

"I love you too." He admitted out loud, causing more commotion from the group. He smiled at her, and then at them. It wouldn't be the same after graduation, but he would still have Kaoru.

* * *

**_Almost 2k words less than my last chapter. I'm ashamed, but oh well. School is kicking my ass, that's why it's taking so long. Inspiration is put on hold in the back of my mind as I try to pass my classes. Meh. _**

**_Anyway, tell me what you think of this shorter chapter._**

**_-K_**


	11. Wonders of the World

_**IT WASN'T SUPPOSED TO BE LIKE THIS! I am so, incredibly sorry. Really, I honestly lost all of my inspiration for a short while. I didn't give up on this story though. I just waited until it all came back... so we'll see how it goes. (Smiles) Okay, this is officially my longest story... and I am SO. Freaking. Excited! Anyway, here's chapter 11. You're probably going to kill me in how I'm planning to end this. Probably. I'm not sure yet (laughs). **_

_**Rurouni Kenshin: I do not own. The Purpose: I do own.**_

_**PS: There. Is. Sex. In This Chapter. So, yeah... just so you know. I have guidelines at that part, if you want to skip it. Have fun, kiddies. Okay, not kiddies. Kiddies don't need to be reading this. (laughs)**_

* * *

It was their last week of school and Kaoru was getting more nervous by the minute. She wasn't ready to graduate; she wasn't ready to start a new life. An unfamiliar life anyway. She sat in class, waiting, lightly tapping her pen against her desk, hardly paying attention to the last of the lesson.

A ball of paper landed on her desk and she looked over. Misao was gesturing for her to read it. Kaoru opened it and silently read it.

_I think it's sweet that Kenshin is staying with you. I still wish you guys would come to Kyoto._

Kaoru smiled and looked up to see the instructor's back to her. She quickly wrote her own message before throwing it back at Misao.

_We'll come visit. I promise. You better come visit too. I can't believe it's only been five months._

Five months. Five months since Tomoe had been gone. It seemed like a lifetime ago... She was the reason they were where they were now, in life. She was the purpose. Kaoru smiled, silently thanking her.

The ball was thrown back at her. _It's only been a few months for you and Kenshin, but seeing you two together... it feels like a lifetime. I'm glad he makes you happy. We all think that you two make a cute couple. I think Tomoe was right in putting you two together. Whether you guys realize it or not._

She smiled. She began to write back, but the teacher's voice made her jump.

"If you two keep passing notes, I'm going to hold you after school." He looked over his shoulder at them and they gave a sheepish smile. "I know that you're all ready for graduation and summer vacation, but you have a few days left. If you could bear with my boring lectures just a few days more..."

He was joking of course. If there was any class that was enjoyable, it was this one.

"Sorry." Kaoru laughed. Misao just stuck out her tongue as he turned back towards the board.

"That's very immature, Makimachi." The whole class laughed.

Kaoru's phone went off just then, indicating that she had received a text, and they all looked at her.

"What have I told you about phones?" The teacher sighed.

"I'm sorry sir." She pulled out her phone and saw that it was Akira. "I'm really sorry, but this is really important."

"And what is it about, Miss Kamiya?"

They all stared at her, waiting for an answer. "It's about Tomoe." She announced before standing up and grabbing her backpack. "I'm really sorry." She rushed out of the room and went to the room across the hall where Kenshin and Aoshi were.

She opened the door and immediately apologized. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but I need to borrow Kenshin."

"What do you need him for, Miss Kamiya?" Saito Hajime. He hated her. Mostly because she couldn't pay attention in his class.

"Our godchild is about to be born." She smiled at him and Kenshin's eyes widened. He quickly excused himself and met her at the door.

"Are you sure?" He asked as they walked out of the school.

"Well, Sayo is in labor. Any time now." She smiled. Labor could be long, but they wanted to be there for all of it. Akira wanted them there as well.

Kenshin walked to his car and opened the passenger door for her. "She's a little early, isn't she?"

"Kaoru laughed and waited until he got in on the other side. "Hey, you can't argue with a baby when it's ready to join the world."

As Kenshin pulled out of the parking lot, he took her hand. He quickly made his way to the hospital. On the way, Kaoru had called Akira and he said he would meet them outside.

"How is she?" Kaoru asked when they arrived and walked up to him.

"In pain." He smiled sympathetically.

"I can't even imagine." Kenshin commented. Akira laughed, agreeing.

"Yes, well, us women can do a lot that you couldn't even imagine." She smiled and they returned it, wholeheartedly.

"Come on. I'll take you to see her." They walked inside and into a room where a fragile young woman lay on the bed, her stomach swollen with Akira and Tomoe's child.

"Sayo," Akira got her attention, "this is Kaoru and Kenshin."

She must have known who they were, because she smiled and held out her hand.

Kaoru went to her immediately and took her hand. "It's so nice to meet you." She smiled at the woman.

"Likewise." Sayo smiled before she looked behind her. "Hello Kenshin. It's a pleasure to finally meet you." He only smiled in response. Sayo's body tensed up as another contraction hit.

Her breath was quick and shallow, like she was having a hard time getting any air. Kaoru knelt down by her side. "Breathe." She whispered in the girl's ear. "It's okay. You can do this." She soothed. Sayo's breathing began to return to normal and Kaoru swept her hand through the girl's hair. "That's it." Sayo just smiled a pain stricken smile at her.

Hours went by and finally the baby was ready to come into the world. Only one person was allowed to stay in the room, and Akira said that Kaoru could.

"No." She shook her head as she made her way to Kenshin. She took his hand and looked back at Akira and Sayo. "This is your baby. You should be the first one to greet him."

His eyes widened at Kaoru's sincere words. "Thank you."

"We'll be out in the hallway." She smiled. They stood in the hallway as they heard Sayo scream, groan and cry in pain.

Kaoru couldn't help but cringe and Kenshin gave her a sympathetic smile. "Not for you, huh?" He teased.

"Not right now." She replied, cringing again at the woman's reactions behind the door. "I want kids someday."

"How many?" He asked without thinking.

She smiled up at him. "At least one, but I could possibly want more." She paused. "How about you?"

"I'd be lucky enough to have one." He said.

"Why do you say it like that?" She asked.

He looked into her eyes. "Sometimes I don't feel like I'm worthy enough to be a father."

She looked forward, staring at the wall in front of her. "It doesn't take much to be a father." She stated, before she smiled to herself. "But I think you'd be a great dad." When he didn't reply, she looked up at him, and his eyes were wide; startled. "I'm sorry. Was that too forward?"

"No, not at all. I'm honored that you think that." He smiled. He opened his mouth to say something else, but the door opened, revealing Akira.

He had the biggest smile on his face; something that most people didn't get to witness. "He's beautiful."

They entered the room and saw the tiny being in Sayo's arms. Tomoe's child. She abandoned the men at the door as she made her way to Sayo.

"Would you like to hold him?" She asked, her eyes heavy. Giving birth was exhausting.

"Can I?" Kaoru asked, hopeful.

Sayo smiled. "Of course." She held out the baby and Kaoru gently took him, minding his head. He was indeed beautiful. She felt tears roll down her cheeks as she turned towards the others. "He's perfect."

Kenshin made his way to her and wiped her tears. "Yes, he is." He turned to Akira. "What did you decide to name him?"

Akira smiled as he made his way towards the group. "Yahiko."

Kaoru's head shot up as she looked at Kenshin.

"What is it?" He asked, concerned. Kenshin gave her an alarmed look as well.

"When we were younger, we always talked about having children." Kaoru explained. "She loved the name Yahiko. She never changed her mind, no matter how many times we would ask her. 'Yahiko. It has to be Yahiko'." She looked down at the infant in her arms. "She never changed her mind..." She whispered. "She loved you. She loves you." She told Yahiko.

Akira looked down at his child and smiled a sad smile. He obviously missed his wife, and looking down at a baby who looked so much like her, he must have missed her even more. "He knows she does." Kaoru handed him his son and he gladly took the newborn. "I just wish she'd been able to hold him before passing."

"She did." Kaoru smiled as she reached her arm around Kenshin's waist, as he, in turn, wrapped his arm around her shoulder. Akira and Sayo looked at her, questioning. "Tomoe held him in her arms as he was being born. It might have only been instant for us, but for them, it was an eternity." Kaoru looked back at Sayo. "You did an amazing job." It was hardly a compliment. Amazing didn't even begin to describe what had happened.

Sayo gave a light, tired chuckle. "Thank you, Kaoru." She looked at Akira. "If you don't mind, I'd like to get a few hours of sleep before you have people over to see your son."

"Not at all." He smiled at her before she lay back to fall asleep.

* * *

The week had gone by slower than anyone could have ever imagined, but at the same time, it had gone faster than anyone was ready for. After this, they would have a few weeks with each other before they separated.

Most of the week Kenshin had been with Aoshi and Sanosuke; occasionally Misao and Megumi would tag along. Kaoru had gone to the hospital to see how Sayo and Yahiko had been doing. She would sit there all afternoon and talk to the two. She'd learned a lot by it; how she had met Akira and how he had introduced her to Tomoe. The way she had described the scenes and Tomoe's reactions made Kaoru's heart warm. It was just like Tomoe.

But the day was finally here: Graduation.

It was just hours before the ceremony and they, as a graduating class, were together, giving their final goodbyes.

Many people surrounded Aoshi and Kenshin as their girlfriends leaned against the far wall; watching the scene before them.

"This kind of irritates me." Misao growled.

"If you're so uncomfortable about women flaunting over your boyfriend, why don't you go do something about it?" Megumi commented as she walked up to them.

Misao made a move and Kaoru laughed before grabbing her arm, holding her in place. "Misao, let it go. Just think of it this way: They'll never see him again like this, but you have years to come with him."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" She asked, looking at her friend. "Knowing that I get to have the rest of my life with him, but other girls get to crawl all over him for the next ten minutes?"

"Yes." A voice answered, making them all jump. They turned and noticed the two said men were beside them. They blushed guiltily.

"And they weren't crawling all of us." Kenshin smiled beside him.

"Maybe not from where you were, but from back here that's certainly what it looked like." Kaoru argued playfully.

"Is that jealousy I hear?" He teased.

"And, what of it?" Kaoru stuck out her tongue and Misao laughed. Megumi just rolled her eyes.

"Have any of you seen Sano?"

"He said he'd be a little late." Aoshi answered before looking at Misao. "We're going to go get ready and then we'll be back." She nodded before watching them leave.

They girls left soon afterwards, going to Kaoru and Kenshin's house to get ready. To their surprise, Hiko was home.

"What are you doing here?" He asked them as they entered.

"We're getting ready for graduation. What are you doing home?" Kaoru asked.

"I'm grabbing a few things so I can run some errands before I head to the school. I thought the boys were getting ready here." He commented after a moment of silence.

"They were at first." She smiled sympathetically at him. It was his house and he had no idea what was going on. "After figuring out that we had no place to get dressed, they decided that we should get dressed here and they would get dressed at Aoshi's."

He sighed. "Fine." He looked at the girls. "Don't drag your feet." He said as he walked out the door.

* * *

An hour passed and they were ready to go. Jumping into Kaoru's car, they made their way to the school. They had told the guys they would all find each other there. After they parked, they approached the doors, but something caught Kaoru's eye. Telling the girls to go ahead, she went to the person who had got her attention, and her eyes widened in surprise as she saw Kenshin.

"What are you doing out here?" She asked as she approached him.

He smiled at her. "I wanted to spend a few more minutes alone with you before we were bombarded by our classmates."

She smiled back as she wrapped her arms around his waist. "I'm sorry I've been so busy this week..." She had once again put someone before him.

"Don't apologize." He kissed her forehead. "You needed to do that, and I'm glad you did. I've been keeping myself busy."

"I love you." She mumbled against his shirt.

He gave a small chuckle. "I love you, too."

She pulled out of his arms and tugged him towards the door. Kenshin went with her willingly. "I'm not ready for this." She admitted.

"None of us really are." He said. And with that, they walked into the school finding their friends and eventually taking their places.

They took their places and the ceremony started. It was long and drawn out, but they all had a good time. Kaoru stood by classmates, whispering little jokes and snide comments to each other. She really would miss them all.

They were pulled out of their conversation when the principle cleared his throat and hesitated. "This isn't what we normally do at graduation, but students have put together a presentation for all of you." He paused again. "I hope you all enjoy this."

Kaoru looked confused as the room darkened and pictures began to show up against the back wall. A slideshow. She shifted her stance, looking at it curiously. It started out with a picture of the graduating class. Pictures of friends showed up afterwards; laughing and loving life. She could hear the families of students chuckling in the background. Not that she could blame them; some of the pictures were very amusing.

Her breath caught as pictures of her friends starting showing up. Misao and Aoshi walking down the hallway, hand in hand. Megumi and Sanosuke sharing a kiss under the tree in front of the school. Kenshin and her laughing at something Tomoe said. After that, countless pictures of Tomoe showed up. Her beautiful smile, her joyful spirit.

Kaoru felt tears roll down her cheeks as pictures of her and Tomoe played. She smiled against the tears. Their friends were in the background of each picture, but her eyes were on Tomoe. She missed her still, but she didn't hurt like she used to. She'd finally moved on.

Tomoe would always be there, but there was so much more to be happy about than to be sad about. Tomoe's life fulfilled it's purpose- and it was glorious.

The last picture was edited. It was so obvious, but it Kaoru's knees go weak. It was a picture of Kenshin and Kaoru together, their friends surrounding them, as Tomoe and Akira smiled by their side.

Their was deafening silence that followed before a round of applause went off. It was beautiful. The lights came back on, but Kaoru couldn't focus.

Classmates instantly surrounded her, pulling her into hugs. It disrupted the auditorium. She hugged them back, apologizing when her tears made their shirts wet. They all stepped back as Kenshin approached her. He pulled her to his chest as she wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Are you okay?" He whispered in her ear.

"I'm great." She smiled against her tears. "That was perfect."

He pulled back and wiped away her tears. "Are you okay to finish?" She nodded. "Good." He smiled, before he gave her a quick kiss. He reluctantly went back to his spot before they announced the graduating class.

When the ceremony was over, they all cheered and separated to find their friends. Kaoru ran to Kenshin. He caught her full force against his body. "So, we're officially graduates." She smiled up at him.

"Are you ready for what comes next?" He asked.

"As long as you're there with me, yes." Someone cleared their throat behind them and they turned to look. "Akira." Kaoru smiled.

He walked towards them, Yahiko in his arms and Sayo to his side. "The ceremony was beautiful."

"It was, wasn't it?" She smiled, gently taking her godson out of his father's arms. "Thank you for coming."

"Thank you for inviting us." He smiled back.

Kenshin wrapped his arm around Kaoru's waist. "We're glad you both could make it." He reiterated. After that, their friends came and bombarded them. Yahiko soon started crying, and Kaoru chastised all of them for waking him up.

Akira and Sayo laughed. "You'll make a good mom." Sayo smiled at her.

Kaoru eyes flew from the baby to Sayo. "What makes you say that?"

"I just know." She smiled. They all stood their for awhile and talked after that. Finally, as people were clearing out, they excused themselves. Yahiko needed to be put to bed.

She was always sad to be separated from him, but she knew that she would see him again. Taking Kenshin's hand, they walked out to the parking lot. "She was right, you know." He said.

"About what?" She looked up at him.

"You would make a good mom." He laughed at her shocked expression. "Don't give me that look."

"Thank you." She smiled, embarrassed. "I've always wanted a child, I just didn't know if I would be any good at parenthood. So that means a lot."

"You'll be great." He kissed her cheek.

* * *

When they made it home, Hiko was there to greet them. "The ceremony was great." He commented, before grabbing his suitcase.

"Where are you going?" Kenshin asked.

"The office. I'm sure you two are wanting some alone time together. Have a good night." He walked to the door. "Don't destroy my house." He added before walking out.

They stared at each other for a minute. "I'm not really sure what to do..." Kaoru admitted.

"What do you want to do?" He asked. Her face turned crimson at his question, and he laughed. "I want to be with you." He whispered in her ear.

She just wrapped her arms around his neck; holding him close. "I love you." She murmured against his neck.

"I know." He said. "I love you, too."

(**_Mature_**)

He pulled back from her and grabbed her hand, leading them into his room. They didn't waste any time. As soon as the door shut, he pushed her against his; his lips descending to hers. His hands latched her sides as her hands wrapped around to his back. They kissed, long and hard before his hands pulled her dress up, taking it off over her head. She stared at her lovingly. She stood before him in just her panties.

Nervous of his opinion of her, she covered her breasts up, but he gently pushed her arms away. "Don't be embarrassed." He smiled before he kissed her again; taking her breasts in his hands. She let out a moan as she slipped her hand into his pants, cupping him.

He smiled against her lips as one of his hands found their way into her panties. She gasped against his lips as he began to play with her.

There was so much sexual tension between the two of them. She wasn't sure she could take much more of this. She took her hand out of his pants and placed it against his shoulder. "Kenshin." She begged against him.

He pulled back, a little. "Are you in a hurry?" He teased.

"Don't tease." She stuck her tongue out. "Please."

He smiled as he separated from her. He led her to the bed, making her lay down before he took his shirt off, followed by his pants. Climbing over her, he gently separated her legs and entered her.

Kaoru didn't know what she was expecting, but this was definitely not it. It was so much better. She pulled her knees up towards her chest as he slid in and out of her. He was slow and gentle, which was new to her... but she loved it.

He leaned down to press his lips against hers. Kaoru smiled against them as her her nails lightly scraped down his back. She felt him shiver against her, and she felt a triumphant feeling well up inside of her.

Kenshin smiled down at her. He loved her, more than he thought he could ever love anyone. He wanted her to pick the pace she wanted. Sliding out of her, he rolled to lay beside where she had been, bringing her to sit on top of him.

She looked confused.

"I want you to pick a pace that's good for you- for the both of us." He brought his hand up to cup the side of her neck; brushing his thumb against her cheek.

She smiled as she took him into her again, gently beginning to rock against him, slowly getting picking up her pace. Soon she held a constant pace as she rode him. They both let out sounds of pleasure. A thin layer of sweat covered both of their bodies, and they marveled in it.

She leaned forward as he leaned up. She slammed her lips against his as she rocked against him. His hands found their way to her hips as he took control. She dug her nails lightly into his shoulders as he started to pound against her. They were both so close to release.

"I love you." She repeated against his thrusts.

Their release was fierce. Crying out, they shuddered against each other. Kaoru leaned forward, collapsing against Kenshin's chest.

Wrapping his arms around her body, he held her close. "I love you, too." He smiled against her hair.

(**_End Mature_**)

She continued to lay there. She didn't know if she could move. Her bones felt like jelly. "That was so perfect."

"It was." He agreed. "I'm not sure how we've made it to where we are, but I'm glad we did." Kenshin admitted.

Kaoru found the strength to lean up to look at him. "I'm glad we did, too. I can't imagine a life without you." She confessed to him, her cheeks heating up.

He smiled, but didn't say anything. She rolled off of him; laying down beside him. Kenshin pushed her hair out of her face as he thought of what to say?

"Are you okay?" Kaoru asked after a few minutes passed.

He looked surprised at her question. "Yeah, why?"

"You just look deep in thought." She shrugged.

He just smiled, again. There was a paused before he opened his mouth to speak. "When Akira came to ask us to be Yahiko's godson..." He paused again.

She propped herself up on her arm. "Yes?" Where was he going with this? There were so many things he could say with this, but only one stuck out to her. His bad reaction to her saying 'your girlfriend's godson'. He might not have meant anything by it, but the reaction had hurt her.

"When you were persuading me to say yes, and I was telling you how sick the situation was... I remember you saying to think of it as my girlfriend's godson."

Kaoru felt sick to her stomach. Why did it have to be that part? She didn't react; she lay there, waiting for him to continue.

"In that moment, I pictured you with a child in your arms..." He paused, embarrassed. "and I loved it." He admitted.

"What?" Kaoru asked, not believing her ears.

"I'm not rushing you, and I'm definitely not pressuring you." He replied. "I just want you to know that I want to spend my life with you." He lay there in the silence for a moment, until a smile began to form on her lips.

"I will always be here with you." She stretched her arm over his chest. "I am in love with you, and that's never going to change."

"I love you" was all he could say. They lay there in the comfortable silence, until he laughed.

"What's so funny?"

"The awkwardness of that conversation." Kenshin admitted.

"What, exactly, made it awkward?"

"We just had sex, and I told you I wanted to have a family with you." He smiled, but his smile quickly fell at a realization. He opened him mouth, but she beat him to it.

Kaoru's eyes were warm, and loving. "It's okay. Whatever happens, we'll face it." She leaned forward and kissed him.

* * *

The next day, Hiko came back to a quiet house... too quiet. Walking up the stairs, he saw that Kenshin's door was open. He quickly scanned the room before walking to Kaoru's door.

If they were sleeping, he didn't want to wake them up. Quietly opening the door, he saw that they were indeed sleeping. Together. Naked. They definitely took the opportunity he handed to them.

Smiling to himself, he shut the door and went back downstairs. He sat in his chair before the phone rang. "Hiko." There was a pause. "May I ask whose calling?" Another pause. "I'll have them call you back. They're sleeping right now."

* * *

**_Oh. My. Geezus. I feel pleased with how that turned out. Again, I really want to apologize for taking so long to update. School, no inspiration... it's a killer. But, I've had some inspirational moments in life, so it totally helped. I hope you all enjoy this. _**

**_Questions? Comments? Concerns?_**

**_-K_**


	12. Epilogue

_**This is it, guys. This is the epilogue to "The Purpose". Honestly, aside from my blocks of creativity, this has been a fantastic journey. I wasn't sure where it was going to go, but all in all, I'm very pleased with my work. I hope you feel the same way. (Smiles)**_

_**I own Rurouni Kenshin... not. Unfortunately, I couldn't even dream of owning it.**_

_**So, here we go. **_

* * *

9 Years Later

Nine years had passed since they graduated, and Kenshin and Kaoru were still as in love as ever. They both went to Tokyo University, and graduated four years later. Kaoru, never actually using her degree, became a house wife, much to her irritation... at the beginning, anyway. Kenshin went to work with his uncle, quickly moving up the chain of command.

Misao and Aoshi permanently moved to Kyoto after graduating university. Aoshi and Misao co-owned the corporation that originally belonged to his father. They were partners, in every sense of the word. They had broken up for a short time, after Aoshi gave her an ultimatum: she either gave up her job to be a wife at home, or they were partners in business only. He didn't want their personal and professional lives intertwining. She had given up both, moving back in with her family. Two months later, he had asked her to come back, telling her that he couldn't live without her. They would make it work. They married a year later.

Megumi and Sanosuke had gotten married a year after Megumi started her internship. After being offered a permanent job, and a full ride through university, Megumi finally went back to school. It had been the hardest time of her life. She had gotten pregnant, and the stress and worn her out; she did it, though. She was now a successful doctor, while Sano stayed at home with their daughter, Tsubame.

Akira was more than happy with Yahiko. He and Sayo were still great friends, and she spent time with Yahiko every chance she got. Yahiko spent a weekend with Kenshin and Kaoru at least once a month.

The first year of Kenshin working with his uncle, Kaoru became pregnant. Her pregnancy was very smooth, and she gave birth to a healthy baby boy, Kenji. He looked just like Kenshin, except he had his mother's eyes. Yahiko and Kenji were best friends, and they talked about each other constantly; always wanting to hang out together.

Everyone remained good friends, even though they were so far apart.

Kaoru sat in the living room as she watched Kenji talk on the phone to Yahiko. She could only smile at her son. Yahiko was like an older brother to Kenji, and she loved that very much. Tomoe would have been so pleased. No, Tomoe was pleased. She was looking down on them right now, smiling.

Kenshin was expected to be home at any moment for lunch. Usually, he would stay at work, but she had asked him to come home today. She needed to talk to him about something. The way she had said it was cryptic; she knew that, but she didn't want to give anything away.

The door suddenly opened, and Kenshin walked through. His face was weary, his eyes nervous. She had really done a number on him... poor guy.

"Daddy!" Kenji cried as he stood up and made his way to Kenshin, the phone still in his hand.

"Hey, who are you talking to?" Kenshin scooped his son up in his arms.

"Yahiko!" He cheered, holding the phone against his father's ear. "Hi!" He screamed.

Kenshin laughed while Kaoru smiled. "Hey, Yahiko. How are you doing?" He paused. "That's great to hear. I need to talk to Kaoru, so I'll talk to you later. Tell you dad I said hi." He put Kenji down. "Finish up talking to Yahiko while I talk to mom." He said softly.

Kenshin straightened up and walked towards Kaoru.

Kaoru stood up and held her hand out, watching Kenshin wrap his fingers slowly around hers. She pulled him up the stairs, towards their bedroom.

"Kaoru-" He started, but she cut him off.

"Are you nervous?" She asked, softly smiling.

"Yes." He wasn't ashamed to admit it. In the back of his mind, he was always scared that she would leave him. He wasn't worthy of her, and he knew it.. but he loved her with everything he had.

She pulled him into the bedroom and led him to the bed; lightly pushing him down.

"Kaoru..." He trailed off as she climbed on his lap, straddling him.

She took his hand and brought it to her mouth. She delicately kissed his finger tips. "I love you." She smiled against his fingers.

He wasn't sure what she was wanting to talk to him about. "I love you, too." He looked into her eyes. "Kaoru, what did you need to talk to me about?"

Kaoru brought his hand to her neck, slowly sliding it down her body; the valley between her breasts and down to her stomach.

His breath quickened as she trailed his hand down her body, only to look down between them as her she paused. His breath caught. "What are you trying to tell me?"

Her grin grew. "What do you think I'm trying to tell you?"

"Are you..." He couldn't even finish his sentence, in fear that it wasn't true.

Kaoru nodded. "Yeah, we are."

He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer. "I love you."

"I know. I love you, too." She rest her forehead against his. "Do you have any name preferences?" She asked.

He looked a little shocked at her question. "It's a little early for that, don't you think?"

"We have enough time, I know. I was just wondering if you had any that we needed to really look at."

He smiled as he kissed her lips. "Are we talking about a boy or a girl?"

Kaoru smiled against his lips. "A girl." She was hopeful. She wanted one of both.

"Do you have any?" Kenshin asked her.

"Tomoe." She answered automatically.

"I think that's the perfect name."

"It'll be to honor her. Without her, we wouldn't be where we are today."

"We have Tomoe to thank for everything." He smiled.

Kaoru opened her mouth to say something, but her phone rang. Taking it out of her pocket, she smiled. "Misao."

"Answer it." He told her.

"Are you sure?"

"Tell her our good news." Kenshin smiled.

Kaoru smiled as she picked up. "Hey, Misao."

_"Hey, what are you up to?"_

"I'm just sitting with Kenshin. What are you doing?"

_"Kenshin? I thought he was at work?" _

"Well, he was. I asked him to come home for lunch."

_"So he can have Kaoru, with a side of Kaoru?" _Misao teased.

"You are so bad." She laughed. "What did you need?"

_"I was wondering if you wanted to go out tonight? A girls night out I guess... we could go drinking." _She laughed.

Kaoru laughed. "I'm all for hanging out, but I can't drink."

_"Ah, Kaoru... we'll call a cab or something. Promise. No high school repeats."_

"You guys didn't even drive drunk in high school." Kaoru commented.

_"You did." _

"True..." She paused. "But that's not why I can't drink." She paused.

_"Well, why can't you?"_

"I'm expecting." She told her friend.

_"Expecting what?" _

Kaoru pulled the phone away from her ear and gave it a disgusted look.

"What is it?" Kenshin asked.

"She doesn't have any idea what I'm talking about."

_"Kaoru, you still there? What are you expecting?"_

Kaoru sighed, as Kenshin laughed. "I'm pregnant, Misao. I'm expecting a baby." Her friend was seriously dense.

The scream that came through was deafening. Kaoru pulled the phone away from her ear.

_"Why don't we just have dinner then? All of us?" _Misao asked.

"That sounds great." Kaoru smiled. "Listen, I only have a little longer with my husband, so I'll talk to you later." She hung up the phone.

"I'm not going back into work today." He said.

"You have to." She laughed.

"No, I don't. I'll tell Hiko why." He pulled out his phone.

Kaoru placed her hand on his. "Invite him to dinner tonight. We'll tell everyone." He nodded as a knock sounded on their door.

"Come in." Kenshin called.

Kenji opened the door. "Can I spend time with daddy now?" He asked innocently.

Kaoru climbed off of Kenshin's lap as Kenji approached them.

"Kenji, mommy has a big question for you."

"What, mommy?"

"How do you feel about having a baby brother or sister?" She asked, as Kenshin wrapped his arm around her, pulling her close to him. Kenji climbed onto his father's lap.

"Right now?" He asked.

"Well, nine months." She told him.

"Yeah!" He smiled.

They smiled back at their son. They talked for awhile before Kenji jumped off of Kenshin's lap, declaring that he was hungry. He ran out of the room, as they stood up.

"Maybe we should see if Akira will keep him for a night or so." He whispered to her.

"And why would we do that?" She smiled.

"Because I want you." Kenshin's voice sounded rough.

Kaoru placed her hand on her stomach. "Well, it's not like you're going to get me pregnant or anything." She stuck her tongue out.

He could only smile.

"I'll talk to Akira." She kissed his cheek before Kenji ran back in, telling them to hurry up. He was hungry!

_-Fin_

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**_That's it. That's the end of "The Purpose". I hope you all enjoyed this as much as I did. Reviews. Tell me what I could do better, or if you thoroughly enjoyed my love tale. (Smiles)_**

**_-K_**


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